The Eaton Vance [profile] folks just landed a key distribution partnership for their next-generation, ETF-like product structure.

Jim Patrick, executive vice president of Envestnet | PMC, confirms that Envestnet will be making the NextShares exchange-traded managed funds (ETMFs) available through both Envestnet's rep-as-PM platform and its Fund Strategist Portfolios for outside strategists. Stephen Clarke, president of Eaton Vance subsidiary Navigate (the power behind NextShares), praised Envestnet's move as demonstrating the Chicago-based, publicly-traded TAMP's "commitment to innovation."

More than half a dozen mutual fund shops have already signed on to the ETMF idea. The big NextShares question on most fundsters' minds is whether or not the B-Ds will embrace the new product structure or not. Envestnet works with a host of broker-dealers and RIAs. Patrick notes that, as of June 30, Envestnet works with more than 41,000 advisors, almost 3 million accounts, and more than $700 billion in client assets.

News of the alliance broke last night, in advance of Eaton Vance reporting its fiscal Q3 2015 earnings this morning. Eaton Vance's $0.57 of adjusted earnings per diluted share missed expectations by $0.05 and dropped 10 percent year-over-year, while its revenue of $355.5 million fell short of expectations by $9.92 million. Yet it had quarterly net inflows of $3.9 billion, a $6-billion swing from the $2.0 billion in net outflows it suffered in fiscal Q3 2014. Its AUM was up eight percent year-over-year to $312.6 billion on July 31, 2015.

Tom Faust, chairman and CEO of Eaton Vance, even cited "continued progress advancing our NextShares actively managed exchange-traded product initiative" as one of three things positioning the Boston-based mutual fund company for "increased revenues" leading to "resumed earnings growth." 

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