A Midwestern asset manager led the inflows way again last month among midsize fund firms, even as the group's overall flows improved by $15 billion year-over-year.

Mary Ellen Bolger Stanek Robert W. Baird & Co. Managing Director, Director of Asset Management

This article draws from Morningstar Direct data on May 2023 open-end 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 70 firms (down month-over-month from 71 in April 2023 and down Y/Y from 73 in May 2022) with between $10 billion and $100 billion each in long-term fund AUM.

Midsize firms had $2.347 trillion in combined long-term fund AUM across 12,556 funds as of May 31, 2023, and they accounted for 9.82 percent of industry AUM. That compares with $2.388 trillion, 12,614 funds, and 9.9 percent of industry AUM on April 30, 2023, and with $2.507 trillion and 10.22 percent of industry AUM on May 31, 2022.

23 midsize firms brought in net May 2023 inflows, up M/M from 20 in April 2023 and up Y/Y from 18 in May 2022.

Baird (including Strategas) led the pack for a second month in a row, thanks to an estimated $951 million in net May 2023 inflows, down M/M from $1.081 billion in April 2023 but up Y/Y from $1.524 billion in May 2022 outflows. Other big May 2023 inflows winners included: WisdomTree, $909 million (up M/M from $345 million, down Y/y from $1.374 billion); Mirae's Global X, $675 million (up M/M from $179 million, up Y/Y from $9 million in net outflows); Van Eck, $645 million (up M/M from $714 million in net outflows, up Y/y from $1.337 billion in net outflows); and Guggenheim (including Rydex), $547 million (up M/M from $397 million, up Y/Y from $1.15 billion in net outflows).

Global X took the lead proportionately last month, thanks to estimated net May 2023 inflows equivalent to 1.7 percent of its AUM. Other big inflows winners included: Innovator, 1.7 percent; and WisdomTree, 1.5 percent.

Baird now leads the 2023 inflows pack so far, thanks to an estimated $4.549 billion in net year-to-date inflows as of May 31. Other big YTD inflows winners include: WisdomTree, $4.229 billion; and Pacer, $3.973 billion.

On the flip side, ProShares and ProFunds took the outflows lead last month, thanks to an estimated $842 million in net May 2023 outflows, down M/M from $775 million in April 2023 inflows and down Y/Y from $1.757 billion in May 2022 inflows. Other big May 2023 outflows sufferers included: BNY Mellon, $794 million (up M/M from $18 million, down Y/Y from $953 million); Macquarie's Delaware, $716 million (down M/M form $976 million, down Y/Y from $2.007 billion); Virtus, $679 million (up M/M from $667 million, down Y/Y from $1.812 billion); and SEI, $630 million (up M/M from $465 million, up Y/Y from $327 million).

Lazard took the outflows lead proportionately last month, thanks to net May 2023 outflows equivalent to 2.6 percent of its AUM. Other big outflows sufferers included: Alger, 2.4 percent; and AQR, 2.1 percent.

Delaware still leads the 2023 outflows pack so far, thanks to an estimated $4.59 billion in net YTD outflows as of May 31. Other big outflows sufferers included: Virtus, $3.116 billion; and SEI, $2.692 billion.

As a group, midsize fund firms suffered $6.968 billion in net May 2023 outflows, equivalent to 0.3 percent of their combined AUM and accounting for 30.34 percent of overall industry outflows. That compares with $5.552 billion and 0.23 percent of AUM in April 2023, and with $21.968 billion, 0.88 percent of AUM, and 56.18 percent of industry outflows in May 2022.

As of May 31, midsize firms have suffered an estimated $15.354 billion in net 2023 outflows. That translates into 0.65 percent of their combined AUM and is nearly 80 times larger than the overall industry's net outflows.

Across the industry, the 780 firms tracked by the M* team (up M/M from 776, down Y/Y from 787) suffered $22.969 billion in net outflows in May 2023, equivalent to 0.1 percent of their combined $23.9 trillion in AUM across their 41,597 funds. That compares with $6.565 billion in net inflows, 0.03 percent of AUM, and 42,060 funds in April 2023, and with $39.103 billion in net outflows and 0.16 percent of AUM in May 2022.

Active funds suffered an estimated $44.016 billion in net outflows in May 2023, up M/M from $30.68 billion but down Y/Y from $109.837 billion. On the flip side, passive funds brought in $21.046 billion in net May 2023 inflows, down M/M from $37.244 billion in April 2023 and down Y/Y from $$70.729 billion in net inflows in May 2022.

So far in 2023, the industry has suffered $193 million in net outflows as of May 31. That's equivalent to 0.0008 percent of overall industry AUM. 

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