ING Funds today announced that its Global Real Estate (IGLAX) received five stars from Morningstar in the Specialty - Real Estate category as of 3/31/07. The ING Global Real Estate Fund received five stars for Overall (25 out of 297 funds), 3 Years (13 out of 239 funds) and 5 Years (9 out of 158 funds) - making it one of the highest rated real estate funds currently available to investors.
The Fund - part of a suite of real estate products designed for mutual fund investors - is managed by ING Clarion Real Estate Securities, one of the leading managers of global real estate securities portfolios in the world with $22 billion under management. ING Clarion is the real estate securities management arm of ING Real Estate, the world's largest real estate investment firm with offices around the world. The fund's goal is to provide investors with high total return by investing at least 80% of its assets in equity securities in the real estate industry. Please note that past performance is no guarantee of future results.
ING Clarion has been exclusively managing portfolios of real estate securities on behalf of institutional and individual investors since 1984. With offices in Philadelphia, London, Tokyo, and Hong Kong, ING Clarion utilizes a network of global real estate research and management professionals located throughout the Americas, Europe, and Asia- Pacific to enhance investment decisions.
The ING Global Real Estate Fund is managed by a three person team of portfolio managers including the firm's Chief Investment Officer. Collectively they bring over 50 years of real estate investment management experience, including evaluating the potential of public companies outside the U.S.
"Real estate investment trusts (REITs) have unique characteristics that may make them attractive to both income-seeking investors as well as those looking for growth," said Shaun Mathews, Head of ING Funds. " A global approach to real estate stock investing - one that allows for both domestic and international real estate stocks - opens a significantly wider breadth of real estate opportunities, including countries like Australia, France, Japan, Netherlands, Hong Kong and Singapore," said Mathews. "ING Clarion's world- wide team works diligently with the extended resources of ING Real Estate's extensive global team to find undervalued real estate stocks that have contributed to the fund's strong performance," said Ritson Ferguson, ING Clarion's CIO.
About ING
ING is a global financial institution of Dutch origin offering banking, insurance and asset management to more than 60 million private, corporate and institutional clients in more than 50 countries. With a diverse workforce of over 120,000 people, ING comprises a broad spectrum of prominent companies that increasingly serve their clients under the ING brand. In the U.S., the ING family of companies offers a comprehensive array of financial services to retail and institutional clients which include life insurance, retirement plans, mutual funds, managed accounts, alternative investments, direct banking, institutional investment management, annuities, employee benefits, financial planning, and reinsurance. ING holds top-tier rankings in key U.S. markets and serves over 15 million customers across the nation. For more information, visit http://www.ing.com/ . Ranking Criteria
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