Pimco equities chief Maisonneuve leaving firm; two strategies closing

(Reuters) - Pimco's global equities Chief Investment Officer Virginie Maisonneuve is leaving the bond powerhouse, it said on Thursday, less than a year and a half after she was hired.

The firm said it would close two Pimco equity strategies - Pathfinder, which is managed by Anne Gudefin, and Emerging Markets Equity, which Maisonneuve oversaw.

Chief Executive Officer Douglas Hodge said in a statement that the equity business would remain an important part of the firm's investing but would concentrate on areas "more fully aligned with our capabilities and clients' needs."

Pimco, which had $1.59 trillion in assets under management on March 31, said it would not fill Maisonneuve's position.

In recent years, Pimco has tried to diversify its investor base to include those buying equity products and even tapped former Goldman Sachs banker Neel Kashkari, who ran the U.S. government's $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program, to direct an expansion into new markets, including stocks.

But the latest high-profile departure for Pimco, which has become synonymous with the U.S. debt markets, is yet another blow for the Newport Beach, California, firm.

In September, Bill Gross, co-founder of Pacific Investment Management Co, left his post as chief investment officer and joined mutual fund management firm Janus Capital, a move that followed record outflows from Pimco's flagship portfolio and his clash with other top executives.

His departure came just eight months after his top deputy, Mohamed El-Erian, stepped down.

"They remain primarily known as a bond shop, and assets in their bond funds have declined as investors were concerned with leadership changes ... and periods of underperformance," said Todd Rosenbluth, director of ETF & Mutual Fund Research at S&P Capital IQ.

Pimco's active and enhanced equities business has more than $50 billion in assets under management.

"It will be interesting to see if this indicates a lower priority on equities," said David Schawel, vice president and portfolio manager of Square 1 Financial.

CEO Hodge said Pimco would continue to manage its "successful" dividend and long/short strategies, as well as expanding the firm's enhanced equities strategies, including those in collaboration with research affiliates.

Maisonneuve will direct the transition, but "in light of these changes she has decided to leave the firm after a transition period," Hodge said.

Pimco brought in Maisonneuve in January 2014 as one of six deputy chief investment officers.

(Reporting by David Gaffen and Jennifer Ablan, Editing by Lisa Von Ahn)

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