T. Rowe Price Group is expanding its Australian business by adding investment management and research professionals at its Sydney office.
The move continues the Baltimore money manager's push to increase its global footprint. In January, the company closed a deal to buy 26 percent of India's oldest mutual fund firm.
Price has hired Australian portfolio manager Randal Jenneke to build its equity team there, and the firm expects to hire four analysts over the next year, said Bill Stromberg, Price's director of global equity.
Besides adding managers and analysts to cover Australian companies, Price also plans to develop an investment product for its clients there, Stromberg said.
Price has been operating an institutional sales and client service office in Sydney since 2004.
"It's a way to deepen our coverage," Stromberg said. Australia has a "pretty good corporate market, a lot of good companies with good balance sheets and a dividend culture."
Price, which manages $391 billion in assets, has investment offices in Baltimore, London, Buenos Aires, Hong Kong, Singapore and Tokyo, and serves clients in 35 countries.
Asked about international acquisitions last week, Price chief executive James A.C. Kennedy said, "On the international front, we've been interested in expanding our knowledge and presence in the world for decades. In terms of 'Are we actively looking for equity investment? No,' but if they come across us as opportunities, we'll take a look at them."
"Our normalcy is continue to expand organically within T. Rowe Price," he added.