Who is Chris Mackay, Magellan's (ASX:MFG) new CIO?

Who's going to run Magellan's ship instead of Hamish Douglass?

Sebastian Bowen

Author Bio Sebastian Bowen has been a Motley Fool contributor since late 2018. Sebastian found his passion for writing and educating others about shares and all things finance after completing his studies in political, economic and social science and enjoys bringing this passion to life at the Fool. His investment philosophy is a simple one – buying high-quality companies at prices that make sense. When he’s not researching his next investment at all hours of the morning, Sebastian enjoys classic movies and likes to unwind with a good book, newspaper or record. Areas of Expertise Dividend investing ETFs Education Bachelor of Political, Economic, and Social Sciences (Government and International Relations), University of Sydney Social Media X/Twitter Favorite Investment Quote "In the short run, the market is a voting machine, but in the long run, it is a weighing machine." – Benjamin Graham

Published February 7, 2022 1:57 pm AEDT

It has certainly been a rough day so far for the Magellan Financial Group Ltd (ASX: MFG) share price this Monday. At the time of writing, Magellan shares are down a nasty 11.37% at $16.41. Although they dipped as low as $16.14 earlier this morning. Magellan hasn't seen these kinds of share prices since late 2014.

The fund manager is now down a depressing 78% from its all-time high of over $73 a share that we saw back in early 2020.

As we covered this morning, this dramatic slide seems to be the result of the announcement earlier today that Magellan's co-founder, chair and chief investment officer (CIO), Hamish Douglass, has "requested a period of medical leave to prioritise his health".

Mr Douglass has been under a lot of scrutiny over the past year or so as Magellan's flagship Magellan Global Fund (ASX: MGF) has struggled with chronic underperformance. The loss of the company's largest funds management mandate late last year, as well as news of Mr Douglass' divorce, hasn't helped matters.

But Magellan has brought in the big guns to account for the absence of Mr Douglass. Douglass' replacement, the company announced this morning, will be none other than Chris Mackay.

So who is Chris Mackay, and can he be the white knight that Magellan might need?

A man stands pondering the future while his shadow on the wall behind reveals he is wearing a cape. — Image source: Getty Images

Magellan brings in Chris Mackay to fill Hamish Douglass' boots

Remember how we described Hamish Douglass as Magellan's co-founder? Well, Chris Mackay is his fellow Magellan co-founder. He also chaired Magellan, and acted as CIO, from its inception in 2006 until 2012.

Since then, he has chosen to concentrate his efforts towards managing MFF Capital Investments Ltd (ASX: MFF). MFF was the old Magellan Flagship Fund that has carved out its own path in recent years, despite the remaining links with Magellan. MFF Capital is a listed investment company (LIC) that invests in a similar fashion to some of Magellan's other funds. It also focuses primarily on the United States markets, and has companies like Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ: AMZN) and Visa Inc (NYSE: V) among its largest holdings.

As my Fool colleague reported this morning, this won't be too difficult a transition considering Mackay's longstanding relationship with Magellan and since MFF and Magellan share office space.

Still, no doubt Magellan's shareholders will be hoping for an arguably much-needed fresh start.

At the current Magellan share price, the company has a market capitalisation of $3.43 billion, with a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 12.7.

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