December 27, 2023, Morgan Stanley headquarters in New York.
Angus Mordaunt | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Morgan Stanley introduces new portfolios for investors tied to the most famous sports leagues.
The investment bank’s asset management arm announced Thursday the launch of what it calls a parametric custom core sports league strategy. This portfolio is aimed at high-net-worth sports fans and allows them to invest in a carefully selected index of companies with the most prominent sports leagues and strong sponsorship, media and advertising ties.
A minimum investment of $250,000 is required to participate.
Sports has proven to be an attractive and growing asset class as valuations have soared over the past decade. So people who are still on the sidelines want to get in. But for most Americans, owning a professional sports team is financially out of reach. Morgan Stanley wants to change that.
The idea for this new service first came about when a Morgan Stanley client asked the bank to design a portfolio consisting of companies that support a particular sport.
“We thought there was a huge opportunity to do something here,” said Sandra Richards, managing director and head of global sports and entertainment at Morgan Stanley. “This one person represents a lot of people who are looking to invest in sports as fans, and many times more, and they want to interact.”
The portfolio’s holdings are selected from large-cap U.S. stocks and consist of 250 to 400 securities from companies seen on the sidelines of major sporting events, on tickers, and among advertisers.
Morgan Stanley says the portfolio mimics the risk characteristics of the S&P 500.
The bank, which manages $516 billion in assets, plans to use Nielsen Sports as a data source to track the activity, spending and visibility of companies involved in professional sports leagues.
“We recognize there is demand from customers asking how they can invest in sports,” Richards said. “And it will continue.”
