M&G's Rhodes snaps up parent Prudential

M&G's top-performing fund manager Stuart Rhodes has bought into parent company Prudential as the firm raised its dividend by 20%.

Rhodes, running the £1.02bn M&G Global Dividend fund, said the environment for dividend payouts from financials has substantially improved since the credit crisis, with further hikes across the sector likely. He has bought a 2.7% stake in the insurer that owns M&G because of its growth prospects in Asia, and the management’s commitment to growing the dividend. Rhodes said: “The fund’s exposure to financials increased in the first quarter with the purchase of Prudential. “The environment has improved sufficiently for dividends to increase more broadly across the sector, with the memor...