UPDATE: JP Morgan Initiates Manning & Napier at Neutral with $16 PT on Recent Underperformance

JP Morgan initiated its coverage on Manning & Napier

with a Neutral rating and a price target of $16 a share. JP Morgan commented, "We are launching coverage of Manning & Napier with a Neutral rating and $16.00 December 2013 price target. Our Neutral rating reflects the combination of long-term fund and sales outperformance with the recent deterioration of both over the last 6-9 months. We see the investment process and the sales structure as being differentiated and stronger than peers. Thus, we have expectations that both performance and sales growth fundamentals could rebound, but until we see some signs of improvement in fund performance, we will maintain a Neutral rating." Manning & Napier closed at $14.11 on Thursday.