PIMCO announced Wednesday the appointment of four new deputy chief investment officers, raising to six the number of new deputy CIOs named since the resignation of Mohamed El-Erian, CEO and co-CIO, on Jan. 21.
Virginie Maisonneuve, Mark Kiesel, Scott Mather and Mihir Worah, currently managing directors at Pacific Investment Management Co., have become deputy CIOs, according to a PIMCO news release.
They join Dan Ivascyn and Andrew Balls, managing directors, who were named deputy chief investment officers last week.
Ms. Maisonneuve is a recent hire at PIMCO, joining this month as head of global equities. Mr. Kiesel is a generalist portfolio manager and global head of the corporate bond portfolio management group. Mr. Mather is head of global portfolio management, and Mr. Worah is head of the real-return portfolio management team.
Analysts say the move is meant to reassure investors that that someone would be able to direct the firm's investments operations were PIMCO CIO William Gross, who is 69, be suddenly unable to continue in his job. Mr. El-Erian was widely seen as Mr. Gross' eventual successor.
“The moves are designed to create a comfort level that there would be a replacement for Mr. Gross,” said Morningstar senior fund analyst Eric Jacobson in an interview.
PIMCO also announced in the news release that Sudi Mariappa will return to PIMCO from GLG Partners, Man Group's hedge fund management subsidiary, where he co-managed that firm's absolute-return fixed-income offering. Mr. Mariappa was named managing director and generalist portfolio manager. He was previously at PIMCO from 2000 to 2011 as a managing director, portfolio manager and senior adviser.
Mark Porterfield, PIMCO spokesman, declined to provide additional comment.
The news release also disclosed two PIMCO departures: Marc Seidner, a managing director and portfolio manager, who the release says returned to Boston to take a role outside of PIMCO; and Charles Lahr, a managing director and equities portfolio manager, who the release says left to seek other opportunities and spend more time with his family.
Mr. Jacobson said Mr. Seidner's departure is not surprising. He was brought in to PIMCO in 2009 by Mr. El-Erian from the Harvard Management Co., where he was head of U.S. fixed income. Mr. El-Erian had been the endowment's CIO.