Perpetual forms alliance with Wellington Management to manage Perpetual's International Share funds

Perpetual Limited (Perpetual) today announced it had closed the in-house manufacturing of Perpetual's International Share funds (funds) in Ireland and transferred the funds to Boston-based investment manager, Wellington Management Company, LLP (Wellington Management), who it had identified as a world class manager of international equities.

The announcement follows a review by Perpetual of its Dublin-based international investment capabilities, looking at market demand, profitability and alignment to its Equities business strategy. This also included an objective assessment of Perpetual's ability to achieve consistent ratings at an investment grade or above on its products through the investment cycle and its existing ability to consistently outperform benchmarks and competitors.

Perpetual's Chief Executive Officer, Mr Chris Ryan, said the arrangement with Wellington Management was a strong and mutually beneficial alliance.

"For Wellington Management, it's about Perpetual's extensive access to networks and relationships as the sole distributor of Wellington Management's Global Value strategy in the Australian retail market and the enhanced opportunities this brings in terms of engaging retail investors; from our perspective, partnering with Wellington Management creates growth options for Perpetual's International Share funds," Mr Ryan said.

"At an organisational level, it's also about implementing constructive change and delivering value for all our stakeholders, including shareholders, in a way that is consistent with and expected of a leading financial services brand like Perpetual."

Perpetual's Group Executive Equities, Ms Cathy Doyle, said Perpetual's Equities business strategy was to maintain excellence in manufacturing and ratings and to retain revenue in core funds, and to build specialist funds through the exploration and incubation of new ideas and channels.

"We remain strongly committed to international equities as an asset class and to delivering international investment management capabilities to the Australian market," Ms Doyle said. "The review confirmed there was growing demand for international equities and a strong alignment to our Equities business strategy, which also includes funds like our Global Resources Fund."

"However, we came to the view that the current manufacturing of Perpetual's International Share funds had not met our business expectations. We have taken the decision to close the in-house manufacturing of the funds; this has also resulted in the closure of our Dublin-based international equities business, PI Investment Management Limited."

Ms Doyle said the retention of its valued client base was the key priority for Perpetual, who had gone through a rigorous search process to identify a world class manager in international equities to assume responsibility for the portfolio.

"Wellington Management is one of the world's most reputable institutional fund managers with an enviable track record. It is a highly-trusted, experienced and well-resourced investment management firm, and is a strong fit with our investment style and brand values. Wellington Management is also committed to supporting Perpetual's client service activities in Australia. It was the combination of these factors that made it the natural partner of choice for Perpetual."

Wellington Management had US$676 billion in total {url=http://www.perpetual.com.au/managed-funds.aspx]funds under management[/url] as at 30 June 2011. Its Global Value strategy was launched in March 2005 and is based on its US value investment philosophy that has been in place for over 20 years. The strategy had raised US$7.4 billion world-wide as at 30 June 2011 and has been rated in the Australian market by leading research houses Lonsec (Recommended), S&P (4 stars) and van Eyk (A). The manager has consistently delivered its medium to long-term performance objectives to clients. Wellington Management's Global Value team has 11 dedicated investors and is supported by a broader team of 50 global industry analysts.

Perpetual Investment Management Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Perpetual, will remain as the responsible entity for the product.

Ms Doyle said Perpetual's investment team had successfully built a reputation over the past 40 years by delivering consistently good returns for investors through fundamental research driven active stock picking.

"The appointment of Wellington Management gives us the flexibility to focus on developing and pursuing specialist equities strategies," she said.

This information has been prepared by Perpetual Investment Management Limited (PIML) ABN 18 000 866 535, AFSL 234426. It is general information only and is not intended to provide you with financial advice. The PDS for Perpetual's international share fund products, issued by PIML, should be considered before deciding whether to acquire or hold units in the funds. The PDS can be obtained by visiting our website

Perpetual Australia. No company in the Perpetual Group guarantees the performance of any fund or the return of an investor's capital (Perpetual Group means Perpetual Limited ABN 86 000 431 827 and its subsidiaries). Past performance is not indicative of future performance.

"Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: Statements in this press release regarding Perpetual - Media's business which are not historical facts are "forward-looking statements" that involve risks and uncertainties. For a discussion of such risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements, see "Risk Factors" in the Company's Annual Report or Form 10-K for the most recently ended fiscal year.