The firm has grown into a solid fixed-income shop since Jeffrey Gundlach launched it in 2009. The now 275-person firm counts managers and analysts who followed him from TCW. Of particular importance are portfolio managers Andrew Hsu and Ken Shinoda, who are likely to take the reins on firm flagship DoubleLine Total Return, which together with related strategies comprises half of the firm’s USD 96 billion in assets under management as of March 2023. An impressive team of analysts and traders supports the fund, which is a marquee example of the firm’s demonstrated expertise in managing securitized debt strategies.
That said, the firm’s success remains inextricably linked to Gundlach. Although he hasn’t been directly involved in trading for years and has a likely successor in deputy CIO Jeffrey Sherman, Gundlach’s experience, reputation, and influence mean his eventual departure could put money in play. On the heels of weak performance in 2019 and 2020, DoubleLine Total Return has seen USD 18 billion in outflows since January 2020 despite good returns in 2021 and 2022.
DoubleLine has added equity and multi-asset offerings and has branched into exchange-traded funds, which helps diversify the business. Not all endeavors have been successful, including the firm’s recently shut fundamental-equity business.