AllianceBernstein LP is a US-based, global asset management firm, owned by the French insurance conglomerate, AXA

AXA

AXA S.A. is a French global insurance group headquartered in the 8th arrondissement of Paris. AXA is a conglomerate of independently run businesses, operated according to the laws and regulations of many different countries. The AXA group of companies engage in life, health and other forms of...

, with approximately $402 billion in assets under management

Assets under management

Assets under management is a financial term used denote the market value of funds being managed by a financial instutition on behalf of its clients, investors, depositors, etc. This metric is a sign of size and success against competition...

, as of September 30, 2011.

AllianceBernstein provides solution-based diversified investment management services worldwide to institutional, high-net-worth and retail individuals. AllianceBernstein’s investment services encompass value

Value investing

Value investing is an investment paradigm that derives from the ideas on investment and speculation that Ben Graham and David Dodd began teaching at Columbia Business School in 1928 and subsequently developed in their 1934 text Security Analysis...

 and growth

Growth investing

Growth investing is a style of investment strategy. Those who follow this style, known as growth investors, invest in companies that exhibit signs of above-average growth, even if the share price appears expensive in terms of metrics such as price-to-earnings or price-to-book ratios...

 equities, blend strategies, fixed income

Fixed income

Fixed income refers to any type of investment that is not equity, which obligates the borrower/issuer to make payments on a fixed schedule, even if the number of the payments may be variable....

, alternatives, and asset allocation

Asset allocation

Asset allocation is an investment strategy that attempts to balance risk versus reward by adjusting the percentage of each asset in an investment portfolio according to the investors risk tolerance, goals and investment time frame.-Description:...

. AllianceBernstein also provides independent investment research, trading and brokerage-related services to institutional clients through Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. LLC and its London-based affiliate.

History

AllianceBernstein was the product of a merger between two well-established firms, Alliance Capital and Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. initiated by its parent corporation, the AXA Group. Bernstein traces its origins back more than 40 years to when Sanford C. Bernstein founded the firm in 1967, as an investment-management firm for private clients. Alliance Capital was founded in 1971 when the investment management department of Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette, Inc.

Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette

Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette or DLJ is a defunct U.S. investment bank founded by William H. Donaldson, Richard Jenrette and Dan Lufkin in 1959. Its businesses included securities underwriting; sales and trading; investment and merchant banking; financial advisory services; investment research;...

, merged with the investment-advisory business of Moody's Investor Services, Inc.

Moody's

Moody's Corporation is the holding company for Moody's Analytics and Moody's Investors Service, a credit rating agency which performs international financial research and analysis on commercial and government entities. The company also ranks the credit-worthiness of borrowers using a standardized...

  In October 2000, Alliance Capital acquired Sanford C. Bernstein to form AllianceBernstein. In 2010 the firm announce plans to develop a risk parity

Risk parity

Risk parity is an alternative approach to investment portfolio management which focuses on allocation of risk rather than allocation of capital...

 strategy for its pension schemes that seek growth while minimizing volatility.

Scope of clients

AllianceBernstein serves several distinct groups of clients. They include private, institutional and retail clients. AllianceBernstein’s institutional clients consist of foundations & charities, sovereign wealth funds & central banks, financial services

Financial services

Financial services refer to services provided by the finance industry. The finance industry encompasses a broad range of organizations that deal with the management of money. Among these organizations are credit unions, banks, credit card companies, insurance companies, consumer finance companies,...

 firms and insurance companies. AllianceBernstein’s sell-side research unit, Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. LLC., serves investment managers and investment consultants who use Bernstein’s research, quantitative strategies and tools, portfolio strategies and equity-trading execution.

AllianceBernstein’s asset management business operates in Europe, Asia, Pacific Rim, and the Americas.

Executive officers

• Peter S. Kraus: Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer
• David Steyn: Chief Operating Officer
• Laurence E. Cranch: General Counsel
• James Gingrich: Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Sanford C. Bernstein, LLC
• John B. Howard: Chief Financial Officer
• Lori Massad: Head of Human Capital and Chief Talent Officer

Company news

• October 2000 – Alliance Capital acquires Sanford C. Bernstein
• December 2003 – Alliance Capital Management Will Pay Record $250 Million and Make Significant Governance and Compliance Reforms To Settle SEC Charges
• February 2006 – Alliance Capital renamed to AllianceBernstein
• March 2007 – AllianceBernstein named #1 on Forbes' list of the 10 Most Trustworthy US Companies
• September 2008 – AllianceBernstein down 75%, looks to rebound
• December 2008 – Lewis A. Sanders announces his retirement and Peter Kraus is named as new CEO of AllianceBernstein
• April 2009 – The US Treasury names AllianceBernstein as one of the three asset managers to help value and manage the TARP assets
• July 2009 – Sanford C. Bernstein is named #1 in every metric by Greenwich Associates
• 2009 – AllianceBernstein launches Dynamic Asset Allocation
  Dynamic Asset Allocation
  Dynamic asset allocation is a strategy used by investment products such as hedge funds, mutual funds, credit derivatives, index funds, principal protected notes and other structured investment products to achieve exposure to various investment opportunities and provide 100% principal...
  
   tool set
• May 2010 – AllianceBernstein launches a suite of new websites
• June 2010 – AllianceBernstein is selected to Manage Dynamic Asset Allocation
  Dynamic Asset Allocation
  Dynamic asset allocation is a strategy used by investment products such as hedge funds, mutual funds, credit derivatives, index funds, principal protected notes and other structured investment products to achieve exposure to various investment opportunities and provide 100% principal...
  
  Portfolio for Transamerica Variable Annuity Products
• October 2010 – AllianceBernstein acquires SunAmerica alternative investments group
• December 2010 – Bernstein Launches Web 'Microsite' on Advice about Selling a Business