Loomis Sayles introduces real-return fund

Loomis Sayles & Co. has launched a multisector-bond fund aimed at financial advisers who want a way to protect their clients against inflation, deflation and stagflation.

The Loomis Sayles Multi-Asset Real Return Fund (MARYX) invests in fixed income, currencies, commodities and equities — but must have 50% of its assets invested in fixed income, said Kevin Kearns, the portfolio manager of the fund and a senior derivatives strategist. The fund is also the first from Loomis that has the ability to buy derivatives.

Due to client concerns over the past year about inflation, Loomis put together a team of seven researchers to examine inflation regimes around the world, Mr. Kearns said. The team identified six kinds of inflation, and the fund has the flexibility to go long and short at the same time to perform in each of these scenarios, he said.

Loomis is one of a number of money managers that hope to enjoy some of the flows going into multisector-bond funds, experts said.

Although “tactical allocation” has been a buzz phrase in the equity world since the 2008 market meltdown, more fixed-income funds are using the strategy, said Todd Rosenbluth, a mutual fund analyst at Standard & Poor’s Financial Services LLC. “We are seeing more fixed-income funds like this one because all of the fund flows are going into fixed income — but they aren’t necessarily sticky,” he said of the assets flowing into bond funds.

Multisector-bond funds had year-to-date inflows of $15.8 billion as of last Monday, according to Morningstar Inc.

Two weeks ago, Loomis Sayles filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission to launch an Absolute Strategies Fund, which can invest entirely in high-yield bonds but will aim to limit its exposure to that class to no more than 50% of its assets, according to Bloomberg News.

E-mail Jessica Toonkel at [email protected].