Morgan Stanley and Eaton Vance Corp have entered into a definitive agreement under which Morgan Stanley will acquire Eaton Vance.
The bank will confirm the acquisition of the specialist provider of advanced investment strategies and wealth management solutions with over $500 billion in assets under management (AUM), for an equity value of approximately $7 billion.
The acquisition advances Morgan Stanley’s strategic transformation with three world-class businesses of scale: Institutional Securities, Wealth Management and Investment Management.
James P. Gorman, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Morgan Stanley commented: “Eaton Vance is a perfect fit for Morgan Stanley. This transaction further advances our strategic transformation by continuing to add more fee-based revenues to compliment our world-class investment banking and institutional securities franchise. With the addition of Eaton Vance, Morgan Stanley will oversee $4.4 trillion of client assets and AUM across its Wealth Management and Investment Management segments.”
Morgan Stanley Investment Management (MSIM) will be a leading asset manager with approximately $1.2 trillion of AUM and over $5 billion of combined revenues. MSIM and Eaton Vance are highly complementary with limited overlap in investment and distribution capabilities.
Thomas E. Faust, Jr., Chief Executive Officer of Eaton Vance also stated: “Over many years, Eaton Vance has delivered above-market growth by aligning our business with leading trends in asset management.
“By joining Morgan Stanley, we will be able to further accelerate our growth by building upon our common values and strengths, which are focused on our commitment to investment excellence, innovation and client service. Bringing Eaton Vance’s leading brands and capabilities under Morgan Stanley creates a uniquely powerful set of investment solutions to serve both institutional and retail clients in the U.S. and internationally.”
Dan Simkowitz, Head of MSIM added: “Eaton Vance brings strong brand recognition and high-quality complementary platforms in key secular growth areas, providing numerous incremental opportunities to increase the reach of our asset management franchise and our value proposition for clients.
“These two businesses have limited overlap and are combining from positions of strength to create one of the leading asset managers in the world. We look forward to this partnership.”
