Advantus Capital Management has launched a second Managed Volatility Fund available through the Securian Funds Trust (SFT) as an option with certain variable annuity contracts and variable life insurance policies.
The SFT Advantus Managed Volatility Equity Fund invests primarily in historically low volatility Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) and can have an effective equity exposure up to 100%.
"We’re excited to make this managed volatility equity investment approach available with Securian’s variable annuity and life insurance products," said Steve Moen, senior vice president of business development and investment solutions at Advantus. "Managed Volatility Funds allow investors to maintain exposure to the equity markets with the potential for lower volatility."
As market conditions change, the effective equity exposure of the Fund changes to manage volatility. The equity allocation is adjusted primarily through the use of futures, reducing equity exposure when markets are more volatile, and increasing exposure when market volatility is low.
"Our approach to managing volatility is straightforward," said Moen. "By adjusting the equity allocation, investors don’t need to solely rely on moving dollars to fixed income to try to reduce risk."
David Kuplic, CFA, and Craig Stapleton, CFA, FRM, are the portfolio managers for the Fund. Both investment professionals have demonstrated expertise and results leading similar managed volatility strategies at Advantus.