Jefferies analysts upped their full-year estimates for US investment firm Eaton Vance this week.

Higher retail flows improved for the business in the first quarter, largely paced by a pick up in fixed income.

Assets under management stood at $321bn at the end of April, Jefferies estimates, up from $315.1bn at the end of March.

“The outlook for organic growth has demonstrated signs of potentially turning the corner as performance and flows broadly appear to be improving,” said Daniel Fannon, a New York-based equity analyst.

Including institutional flows, Jefferies full second quarter estimates for total flows for Eaton Vance stands at $3.75bn.

This includes $2bn of fixed income, $250m of alternative flows and $1.5bn into portfolio implementation.

Jefferies forecasts a negative $250m worth of outflows for equity funds over the period.

Eaton Vance admitted that the end of last year proved  tough for the company due to product mix and market-driven declines in revenue.

As part of its response, earlier this year the firm launched its first three NextShare funds, new structures called “exchange-traded managed funds.”

The products contain characteristics of traditional mutual funds and ETFs and have been trading since the end of March.

So far twelve fund sponsors have signed up to offer the vehicles, which potentially carry benchmark-beating returns by investing in actively managed strategies, Eaton Vance claims.

Because they trade on an exchange, NextShares may offer cost and tax efficiencies that can enhance shareholder returns.

Thomas Faust, Eaton Vance chairman and chief executive, opened up the Investment Company Institute’s (ICI) main annual GMM event on Wednesday.

ICI acts as the trade body of US mutual funds, exchange-traded funds, closed-end funds and unit investment trusts.

Last month Faust, who chairs of ICI’s GMM planning committee, said he expects US investors to benefit from NextShares products for years to come.

Interactive Brokers recently announced plans to offer the funds through its investing and trading platforms.

“The process of getting intermediaries/broker dealers signed on has been a work in progress and we look forward to getting additional color on this trend,” Jefferies’ Fannon added in his research note.

The analyst upped his price target on Eaton Vance shares to $34, from a previous $30.