Among asset management firms, Affiliated Managers Group (AMG +1.20%) is not one that immediately jumps to mind for most investors. Yet this manager of managers, which owns stakes in several different boutique investment management firms, has had the type of performance that should get it noticed by more investors.
Image source: Getty Images.
Up 62% over the past year
AMG owns majority stakes in about 40 boutique investment managers, which have total assets under management of about $942 billion. It shares revenue with the firms but is hands-off as far as operations go, so the shops have full independence and autonomy over their own businesses.
Some of the affiliates include Tweedy, Browne Company; Yacktman Asset Management; TimesSquare Capital; Third Avenue Management; Artemis Investments; Pantheon; and Parnassus Investments, to name a few.
So, it has relatively low overhead with a diverse mixture of affiliates that manage equities, alternatives, fixed income and multi-assets, and private market investments. The mix is about 60% private markets and alternatives and about 40% equities and multi-asset.
The combination of affiliates has allowed AMG to perform well in all market cycles, even when stock markets are down. AMG stock is up 26% year to date and has a best-in-class one-year return of 62%, as the chart below shows.
It has a 40% average annualized return over the past three years and a 16% average annualized return over the past five years. Illustrative of its all-weather capabilities, it crushed the market during the 2022 bear market, dropping just 3%.
$600 million in share repurchases
Over the years, AMG’s portfolio has tilted more toward alternatives and private equity investments, which has helped it outperform in choppier markets for stocks.
In the second quarter, it hit a record of $942 billion in assets, with $13 billion in net inflows including a record $29 billion in alternative net inflows.
Revenue soared 30% year over year to $641 million in Q2, while net income climbed 74% to $237 million for all the affiliates. The economic earnings per share (EPS), which the company uses to calculate its share from affiliates, rose 54% to $8.29 per share.
Further, the company generated some $35.5 billion in net client cash flows through the first six months of 2026. That allowed AMG to buy back $189 million in shares in Q2, bringing the year-to-date total in share repurchases to $375 million. For the full year, it expects to execute $600 million in share repurchases.
Affiliated Managers Group
Today’s Change
(1.20%) $4.28
Current Price
$360.75
Key Data Points
Market Cap
Day’s Range
$358.00 – $368.35
52wk Range
$228.53 – $392.92
Volume
183.2K
Avg Vol
297.9K
Gross Margin
93.99%
Dividend Yield
0.01%
“[W]e are uniquely positioned to capitalize on attractive growth opportunities, drive durable earnings growth, and create meaningful long-term value for our shareholders,” AMG President and CEO Jay Horgen said in the company’s July 30 earnings release.
In Q3, AMG anticipates adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) to be between $315 million and $325 million, which would be up at the midpoint from $316 million in Q2. The economic EPS is targeted for between $8.43 and $8.71, which would be up approximately 40% at the midpoint year over year.
The incremental reduction of the share count on the market through buybacks should help lift the stock price, along with its expected earnings growth. Combine that with its dirt cheap valuation, trading at just 10 times forward earnings, and AMG is a solid buy right now.
