As part of its ongoing commitment to serving the needs of the retirement market, First Eagle Investment Management (“First Eagle”) today announced that it plans to provide a suite of retirement share classes for its mutual funds. Scheduled to launch in March 2017, the new shares will present a transparent and complementary menu of pricing options from which retirement plan fiduciaries can choose.

“As an investment manager, First Eagle pursues goals that are critically important to retirement savers—preservation of purchasing power, downside protection and attractive long-term returns,” said Robert Bruno, head of retail distribution at First Eagle Investment Management and president of FEF Distributors. “Our record in these areas has already earned us the trust of a number of retirement plans, and the new share classes should make it easier for plans to access our investments through vehicles that are transparent and dedicated to this market.”

Joseph Lee Joins First Eagle

First Eagle also announced that Joseph Lee joined the firm in December 2016 as head of Retirement Platforms and Strategy. In this new role, Lee will be responsible for building relationships with retirement plan recordkeepers and intermediaries, and he will also help develop the firm’s strategy for delivering solutions to group retirement plans and individual retirement savers.

Lee will report to Michael Rosenberg, head of Retirement Investment Solutions. “I am very pleased that we have attracted such an experienced and talented executive to First Eagle,” Rosenberg said. “His arrival at the firm and the addition of the four new share classes enhance our ability to help Americans saving for retirement.”

First Eagle created a dedicated retirement effort in November 2016 with the goal of helping American retirement savers reach their investment goals. The Retirement Investment Solutions group will closely partner with financial advisors, investment consultants and retirement plan recordkeepers to provide investment solutions to plan sponsors, plan participants and individual retirement savers.

Rosenberg added, “A shortfall in retirement savings continues to present significant challenges to many Americans. To make a positive difference in retirees’ lives, we think investments should combine attractive real returns over full market cycles with the ability to help prevent permanent impairment of capital in down periods—especially in the years just before and shortly after retirement. Our investment strategies seek to embody this combination.”

Prior to joining First Eagle, Lee was at DoubleLine Capital as relationship manager in charge of national accounts for the defined contribution investment-only (DCIO) business. Earlier in his career, Lee was head of Advisor-Sold Defined Contribution Sales and National Accounts at BlackRock. Previously, he worked at Goldman Sachs Asset Management as director of Retirement Services, where he was charged with expanding the firm’s defined contribution business. Lee holds a BA in economics from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA in finance from Loyola University in Chicago.

About First Eagle Investment Management

First Eagle is an independent investment management firm that manages approximately $97 billion in assets (as of 12/31/16) on behalf of institutional and individual clients. With the core purpose of providing prudent stewardship of client assets, the firm focuses on active, fundamental and benchmark-agnostic investing, with a strong focus on downside protection. First Eagle’s investment capabilities include equity, fixed income and multi-asset strategies. Over a long history dating back to 1864, First Eagle has helped its clients avoid permanent impairment of capital and earn attractive returns through widely varied economic cycles—a tradition that is central to its mission today. First Eagle Investment Management is the adviser to First Eagle Funds. For more information, please visit www.feim.com.