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T. Rowe Price Group, Inc.

T. Rowe Price Group is a financial services holding company that derives its consolidated revenues and net income primarily from investment advisory services that its subsidiaries provide to individual and institutional investors in the sponsored T. Rowe Price mutual funds and other investment portfolios. Our investment advisory revenues depend largely on the total value and composition of assets under our management. Accordingly, fluctuations in financial markets and in the composition of assets under management impact our revenues and results of operations.
We operate our investment advisory business through our subsidiary companies, primarily T. Rowe Price Associates, T. Rowe Price International, and T. Rowe Price Global Investment Services. The late Thomas Rowe Price, Jr., began our advisory business in 1937, and the common stock of T. Rowe Price Associates was first offered to the public in 1986. The T. Rowe Price Group corporate holding company structure was established in 2000.
Our assets under management are accumulated from a diversified client base across four primary distribution channels: third-party financial intermediaries that distribute our managed investment portfolios in the U.S. and other countries; individual U.S. investors on a direct basis; U.S. defined contribution retirement plans; and institutional investors in the U.S. and other countries.
We manage a broad range of U.S. and international stock, blended asset, bond, and money market mutual funds and other investment portfolios that are designed to meet the varied and changing needs and objectives of individual and institutional investors. Mutual fund shareholders can exchange balances among mutual funds as permitted when economic and market conditions and their investment needs change.
From time to time, we introduce new funds and other investment portfolios to complement and expand our investment offerings, respond to competitive developments in the financial marketplace, and meet the changing needs of our investment advisory clients. We will open a new mutual fund or investment portfolio if we believe that we have the appropriate investment management expertise and that its objective will be useful for investors over a long period. Conversely, we may also limit new investments into a mutual fund or investment mandate in order to maintain the integrity of the investment strategy and to protect the interests of its existing fund shareholders and investors. At present, the following funds are closed to all new investors.

Investment objectives for our managed investment portfolios, including the Price funds, accommodate a variety of strategies. Investors select from among the mutual funds based on the distinct objective that is described in each fund’s prospectus. Investment management of other client portfolios includes approaches similar to those employed in the Price funds. Equity investment strategies may emphasize large-cap, mid-cap or small-cap investing; growth, value or core investing; and U.S., global, or international investing. We also offer systematic, tax-efficient, and blended equity and asset allocation investment strategies including target retirement-date investment portfolios, as well as active, systematic and municipal tax-free management strategies for fixed income investments. Our specialized advisory services include management of stable value investment contracts and a distribution management service for the disposition of equity securities received from third-party venture capital investment pools.
We employ fundamental and quantitative security analyses in the performance of the investment advisory function. We maintain substantial internal equity and fixed income investment research capabilities. We perform original industry and company research using such sources as inspection of corporate activities, management interviews, company-published financial and other information, financial newspapers and magazines, corporate rating services, and field checks with suppliers and competitors in the same industry and particular business sector. Our research staff operates primarily from offices located in the United States and Great Britain with additional staff resident in Argentina, Hong Kong, Japan, and Singapore. We also use research provided by brokerage firms and security analysts in a supportive capacity and information received from private economists, political observers, commentators, government experts, and market analysts. Our stock selection process for some investment portfolios is based on quantitative analyses using computerized data modeling.
We also provide certain administrative services as ancillary services to our investment advisory clients. These administrative services are provided by several of our subsidiaries and include mutual fund transfer agent, accounting, and shareholder services; participant recordkeeping and transfer agent services for defined contribution retirement plans investing in our sponsored mutual funds; discount brokerage; and trust services. Approximately 90% of our administrative revenues in 2009 were determined based generally on the recovery of our related costs to provide the administrative services. Changes in our administrative revenues and related expenses, therefore, do not significantly affect our net operating income or net income.
Information concerning our revenues, results of operations and total assets, and our investment assets under management during the past three years is contained in our consolidated financial statements and in note 2 thereto, which are both included in Item 8 of this Form 10-K.

EMPLOYEES.

At December 31, 2009, we employed 4,802 associates, down 10.8% from the end of 2008 due to attrition, retirements, and the 5.5% workforce reduction that we initiated in April 2009. We may add additional temporary and part-time personnel to our staff from time to time to meet periodic and special project demands, primarily for technology and mutual fund administrative services.