Miton UK Value Opportunities fund managers George Godber and Georgina Hamilton are to join Polar Capital, sister newspaper Investment Adviser has exclusively revealed.
The managers, whose resignation from Miton was announced last week, are understood to be joining Polar upon the expiration of their notice periods to run a UK equity product.
Mr Godber is contracted to Miton for the next 12 months, and Ms Hamilton for the next six. They joined the firm in 2012, having previously worked at Matterley alongside Henry Dixon, now at Man GLG.
Their departure from Miton prompted a 25 per cent drop in the company’s share price on 7 April.
The pair’s UK Value Opps fund is £869m in size, and accounts for almost 30 per cent of Miton’s total assets under management.
Miton stated its focus “continues to be on looking after the best interests of its clients as it recruits replacement portfolio managers”.
The fund has delivered a return of 57.7 per cent since its launch in March 2013 compared with the average 16.4 per cent return from the IA UK All Companies sector, according to data from FE Analytics.
Polar Capital declined to comment.
Polar does not currently offer a long-only UK equity product, but did launch a UK long/short portfolio for Guy Rushton in 2014. Mr Rushton was hired from Legal & General Investment Management.
Adviser view
Robert Forbes, chartered financial planner at London-based Stadden Forbes Wealth Management, said: “One of the more notable moves in the fund manager merry-go-round, this will be keenly felt by Miton investors and if the move in its share price is any indication it’ll be to Polar’s gain.
“It’ll be interesting to see how Miton successfully manages their exits and they should be able to have an orderly succession although judging by the share price fall few people are confident of this.”
