An RIA's new mutual fund shop took the lead among the smallest fund firms last month.

This article draws from Morningstar Direct data on June 2019 open-end mutual fund and ETF flows, excluding money-market funds and funds of funds. More specifically, this article focuses on the 514 firms (one fewer than in May) with less than $1 billion in fund AUM each. 211 of those firms gained net inflows last month.

Newcomer Tactical Fund Advisors (sibling to Horter Investment Management) took the lead last month in the sub-$1-billion-AUM pack, bringing in an estimated $111 million in net June inflows. Other big June winners included: Trust for Credit Unions, $105 million (up from $35 million in May): Transamerica sibling Aegon Asset Management US, $65 million; Liberty Street, $34 million (up from $26 million); and Infinity Q, $31 million (down from $32 million).

Proportionately, setting aside brand new fund families, Metaurus led the micro fund firm pack with estimated net June inflows equivalent to 60.43 percent of its AUM, up from 0.01 percent in May. Other big June winners included: AFAM's Innealta, 49.6 percent (up from 19.65 percent); Roundhill Financial, 48.99 percent; Equable Shares, 38.22 percent (up from 0.51 percent); and Procure, 30.6 percent (down from 62.17 percent).

June's apparent newcomers included Aegon Asset Management US and Tactical Fund Advisors.

On the flip side, June was a rough month for Muzinich, which suffered an estimated $71 million in net outflows, more than any other sub-$1-billion-AUM fund firm and down from $6 million in net May inflows. Other big June sufferers included: Power Mutual Funds, $68 million (up from $27 million); Balter, $62 million (up from $36 million); Rational Advisors' Strategy Shares, $61 million (up from $9 million); and Gerstein Fisher, $36 million (up from $10 million).

Proportionately, Primary Trend suffered the most last month, with estimated net June outflows equivalent to 155.01 percent of its AUM (i.e. its outflows dwarfed the AUM it had left over after those outflows), up from 0.31 percent in May. Other big June sufferers included: Alambic, 86.99 percent (up from 0.09 percent); Cushing ETFs, 84.65 percent (up from 14.85 percent); Chou America 53.28 percent (up from 2.08 percent); and Torray Resolute, 34.46 percent (up from 0.49 percent).

As a group, the 514 fund firms with less than $1 billion each in fund AUM suffered $198 million in net June outflows, equivalent to about 0.22 percent of their combined AUM. That's up from $121 million in net May outflows.

Across the whole industry (M* tracks flows from 778 firms), long-term mutual funds and ETFs brought in a combined $46.25 billion in estimated net inflows in June, equivalent to about 0.24 percent of industry AUM. That's up from $1.843 billion in net May outflows. Passive funds brought in $68.599 billion in net June inflows, while active funds suffered $22.349 billion in net outflows. 

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