Manning & Napier Advisors Names Two Top Execs

Manning & Napier Advisors has tapped Patrick Cunningham as chief executive officer and Jeff Coons as president, the Fairport, New York firm announced.

Cunningham, who was previously co-director of the firm’s Executive Group and managing director, Client Relations, has been with the firm since 1992.  Coons, the current co-director of Research, will retain that position and will continue to serve on the Senior Research Group, a team of nine responsible for overseeing the investment process. He has been with the firm for 25 years.

The appointments mark a shift in the firm’s operating structure, which has been managed by a five-person Executive Group since 2003, according to the announcement.

Manning & Napier will remain an employee-owned firm, with 45 current shareholders, including co-founder Bill Manning. The Executive Group will also remain intact and serve as an advisory board to the CEO.

Assets under management are approximately $30 billion, while proprietary mutual fund and collective investment trust assets are currently more than $13 billion, up from less than $2 billion in 2004, the company said.

«