Firm Taps Jim Kennedy to Become President and CEO, Brian Rogers Chairman, and
Ed Bernard Vice Chairman
BALTIMORE, March 16 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- T. Rowe Price Group
(Nasdaq: TROW) today announced that Chairman and President George A. Roche
plans to retire during the fourth quarter of 2006. Upon Mr. Roche's
retirement, the Board of Directors plans to elect James A.C. Kennedy,
currently director of equities, as president and chief executive officer of
the firm, which manages almost $270 billion for institutional and individual
investors worldwide.
In addition, the Board of Directors plans to elect Brian C. Rogers
chairman of the board and Edward C. Bernard vice chairman. Mr. Rogers will
continue to serve as chief investment officer, as well as the manager of the
T. Rowe Price Equity Income Fund and large-cap value portfolios for
institutional clients. Since James S. Riepe announced his retirement at the
end of last year, Mr. Bernard has assumed management responsibilities for the
firm's marketing, distribution, investor service, technology, and legal
activities.
Also, as part of the transition, William J. Stromberg, 46, now co-director
of equities and director of global equity research, will become the director
of equities and global equity research.
Mr. Roche, 64, started with T. Rowe Price as a natural resources analyst
in 1968 working with company founder Thomas Rowe Price, Jr., and was portfolio
manager of the New Era Fund from 1979 through 1997. He has served on the
Board of Directors since 1980 and was chief financial officer from 1984
through 1997. Mr. Roche became chairman and president in 1997, and since then
the firm's assets under management have grown from approximately $100 billion
to a record $270 billion (as of December 31, 2005), and T. Rowe Price has
become a leading global investment management organization. His retirement
will complete a long-planned management transition that started in 2003 when
M. David Testa announced his retirement as vice chairman and chief investment
officer, and continued with Mr. Riepe's retirement.
Mr. Kennedy, 52, has served on the firm's Board of Directors since 1996
and Management Committee since 2000. He joined the firm in 1978 as an
investment analyst in the natural resources area, working with Mr. Roche. Mr.
Kennedy became the director of equity research in 1987 and the director of
equities in 1997. He has played a key leadership role in developing the firm's
U.S. equity investment organization for nearly 20 years and, more recently,
contributed to the expansion of its global equity investment capabilities.
"At T. Rowe Price, we focus on helping our clients achieve their
investment goals," said Mr. Kennedy. "We have pursued this by building a
collaborative organization of very talented associates who seek to deliver
investment management excellence and world class service to our clients. Over
the last few decades, we have enhanced our position in the marketplace by
thoughtfully entering multiple distribution channels around the world and
developing a broad array of investment portfolios. I am extremely proud of our
T. Rowe Price associates, our teamwork, our discipline and our culture; and I
am confident that we are well-positioned for the future to continue meeting
client needs."
Mr. Rogers, 50, has served on the firm's Board of Directors since 1997 and
Management Committee since 2003. He joined the firm in 1982, has been a
portfolio manager since 1985, and became chief investment officer in 2004.
During his tenure, Mr. Rogers has helped build one of the strongest large-cap
value investment teams in the industry.
"While the financial markets heavily influence our results over the short
term, over the long term our success will continue to be determined by how we
perform for our clients," Mr. Rogers noted. "As we continue to grow our
business, I look forward to working closely with the Board of Directors on
governance and other strategic corporate issues."
Mr. Bernard, 50, joined the firm in 1988 and worked directly with Mr.
Riepe on a wide range of the firm's distribution, servicing, and marketing
functions, as well as oversight of the firm's mutual funds. He has served on
the firm's Board of Directors since 1999 and Management Committee since 2000.
He has been nominated to succeed Mr. Riepe as a director of all the T. Rowe
Price mutual funds when Mr. Riepe's terms expire next month.
Mr. Roche said that: "T. Rowe Price is one of the premier investment
management organizations in the world and I am proud to have played a role in
that success. While my upcoming retirement represents the final step in a
changing of the guard for T. Rowe Price, I am extremely confident that the
firm will move forward from a position of strength, and that the organization
and its clients will be well served by our next generation of leaders. T. Rowe
Price's reputation for integrity and excellence will be sustained and enhanced
in the years ahead.
"Our focus on maintaining depth and breadth in our senior management,
reflected in the leadership role of our Management Committee for more than 20
years, has enabled us to implement a smooth transition. Jim, Brian, and Ed
have been influential and strategic leaders for many years. They have
considerable experience in the management of the firm as members of the
company's Management Committee and Board of Directors, and they will
complement each other very well in their new roles."
The T. Rowe Price Group Management Committee also includes Mary J. Miller,
50, director of fixed income, and David J.L. Warren, 48, the chief executive
officer and president of T. Rowe Price International. Ms. Miller joined T.
Rowe Price in 1983 and has been a member of the Management Committee since
2004. She is also the portfolio manager of the Tax-Free Income Fund. Mr.
Warren has been with the firm since 1983 and joined the Management Committee
in 2000. He is also a co-manager of the firm's world ex-U.S. portfolios.
Founded in 1937, Baltimore-based T. Rowe Price Group, Inc. is a global
investment management organization with $269.5 billion in assets under
management as of December 31, 2005. The firm provides a broad array of mutual
funds, sub-advisory services, and separate account management for individual
and institutional investors, retirement plans, and financial intermediaries.
The company also offers a variety of sophisticated investment planning and
guidance tools. T. Rowe Price's disciplined, risk-aware investment approach
focuses on diversification, style consistency, and fundamental research. More
information is available at http://www.troweprice.com.
SOURCE T. Rowe Price Group, Inc.
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Related links:
http://www.troweprice.com
CONTACT:
Brian Lewbart, T. Rowe Price Group, Inc.,
+1-410-345-2242
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