A Texas mutual firm took the lead last month among large fund firms, and the group's flows improved by $20.62 billion from a year earlier.

David Paul "Dave" Butler Dimensional Fund Advisors Co-CEO

This article draws from Morningstar Direct data on April 2023 mutual fund and ETF flows, excluding money market funds and funds of funds. (Other asset management products, like CITs and SMAs, are also not included.) More specifically, this article focuses on the 23 firms (down year-over-year from 24 in April 2022) with between $100 billion and $500 billion each in long-term fund AUM.

Large fund firms had a combined $4.686 trillion in total long-term fund AUM across 14,924 funds as of April 30, 2023, and they accounted for 19.42 percent of overall industry long-term fund AUM. That compares with $4.658 trillion, 14,915 funds, and 19.43 percent on March 31, 2023, and with $5.012 trillion and 20.39 percent on April 30, 2022.

Six large fund firms brought in net inflows last month. That's up month-over-month from five in March 2023 and up Y/Y from three in April 2022.

Dimensional Fund Advisors (DFA) took the inflows lead last month, thanks to an estimated $1.01 billion in net April 2023 inflows, up M/M from $783 million in March 2023 and up Y/Y from $188 million in net April 2022 outflows. Other big April 2023 inflows winners included: Schwab, $757 million (down M/M from $3.391 billion, down Y/Y from $2.538 billion); Edward Jones' Bridge Builder, $697 million (down M/M from $2.35 billion, down Y/Y from $1.871 billion); MFS, $646 million (up M/M from $567 million in net outflows, up Y/Y from $802 million in net outflows); and AllianceBernstein, $418 million (up M/M from $242 million in net outflows, up Y/Y from $360 million in net outflows).

Schwab leads the 2023 large firm inflows pack so far, thanks to an estimated $11.285 billion in net year-to-date inflows as of April 30. Other big YTD inflows winners include: DFA, $5.095 billion; and Bridge Builder, $4.021 billion.

On the flip side, last month was another rough one for Franklin Templeton (including Royce), which led the outflows pack for a third month in a row, this time thanks to an estimated $2.016 billion in net April 2023 outflows, down M/M from $2.936 billion in March 2023 and down Y/Y from $4.444 billion in April 2022. Other big April 2023 outflows sufferers included: Lord Abbett, $1.434 billion (down M/M from $1.73 billion, down Y/Y from $2.787 billion); Ameriprise's Columbia Threadneedle, $1.1 billion (down M/M from $1.137 billion, down Y/Y from $2.17 billion); Morgan Stanley (including Calvert and Eaton Vance), $839 million (down M/M from $2.246 billion, down Y/Y from $2.558 billion); and John Hancock, $785 million (up M/M from $96 million, down Y/Y from $964 million).

Franklin also leads the 2023 large firm outflows pack so far, thanks to an estimated $6.882 billion in net YTD outflows as of April 30. Other big YTD outflows sufferers include: Lord Abbett, $4.253 billion; and Jackson, $3.419 billion.

As a group, large fund firms suffered $6.053 billion in net April 2023 outflows, equivalent to 0.13 percent of their combined AUM. That's down M/M from $10.801 billion and 0.23 percent, and down Y/Y from $26.673 billion and 0.53 percent.

Across the industry, the 776 firms tracked by the M* team (down M/M from 785, down Y/Y from 796), brought in $6.565 billion in net inflows in April 2023, equivalent to 0.03 percent of their combined $24.131 trillion in AUM across 42,060 funds. That compares with $25.527 billion in net outflows, 0.11 percent of AUM, $23.968 trillion in AUM, and 42,221 funds in March 2023, and with $89.224 billion in net outflows, 0.36 percent of AUM, and $24.585 trillion in AUM in April 2022.

Active funds suffered an estimated $30.68 billion in net outflows in April 2023, down M/M from $58.306 billion and down Y/Y from $86.386 billion. On the flip side, passive funds brought in $37.244 billion in net April 2023 inflows, up M/M from $32.778 billion and up Y/Y from $2.838 billion in net outflows.

So far in 2023, the industry has brought in $22.844 billion in net inflows as of April 30. That's equivalent to 0.09 percent of overall industry AUM. 

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