On April 7, two companies formed a partnership focused on domestic energy mutual funds. MainStay Investments, the mutual fund distributor for New York Life Insurance Co., formed a subadvisory relationship with Cushing Asset Management LP, a Swank Capital LLC subsidiary, New York Life said that day. MainStay Investments adopted three existing open-end mutual funds managed by Cushing, New York Life added, noting that the funds have about $1.6 billion in assets.

Jerry Swank, Cushing’s founder, said “Our team is very excited about the opportunities presented by this new relationship with MainStay Investments, a leader in the mutual fund industry and affiliated with the largest mutual life insurance company in the United States. We believe the operational and distribution resources offered by MainStay will play an important role in our future growth while enabling our team to remain focused on the execution of our investment strategy.”

The adopted funds are the Cushing MLP Premier Fund, the Cushing Royalty Energy Income Fund and the Cushing Renaissance Advantage Fund, the company said. The funds will be reorganized into a portfolio as MainStay Cushing mutual funds, the company added. The first two funds focus on the midstream and upstream sectors, respectively, the company said. The Renaissance Advantage Fund focuses on investments that would serve companies involved in the “emerging U.S. energy renaissance,” New York Life added.

On July 1, subject to shareholders' approval, MainStay Investments should become the investment advisor, while Cushing will become the subadvisor, the company said. Cushing will continue to manage the portfolio's basic management, New York Life added.

Stephen Fisher, president of MainStay Investments, said “Companies across the energy supply chain and energy master limited partnerships have experienced significant growth given the increasing demand for energy and the desire for American energy independence."

He added, “These funds can provide diversification for investors, given they generally offer low correlation to other asset classes historically, inflation protection and a steady stream of distributions. We look forward to working with Cushing, a firm with an excellent track record, strong investment culture, and expertise in the energy sector.”

New York Life Insurance Co. is based in New York. MainStay Investments is based in Parsippany, N.J.

Cushing Asset Management LP and Swank Capital LLC are based in Dallas.