Fred Jensen
About Fred Jensen
Fred Jensen is the Chief Compliance Officer (CCO) of Western Asset High Yield Opportunity Fund Inc. (HYI), serving since 2020. He was born in 1963 and is currently part of Franklin Templeton’s Global Compliance organization, bringing two decades of senior compliance leadership from Legg Mason and earlier roles at The Reserve Funds and Ambac Financial Group . Officers of HYI receive no compensation from the Fund (other than reimbursement of reasonable out-of-pocket travel expenses for attending Board meetings), and the Fund’s CCO reports directly to the Board and meets regularly on risk management matters, underscoring his governance role over compliance and risk oversight rather than pay-for-performance tied to fund returns .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Franklin Templeton | Director – Global Compliance | Since 2020 | Direct compliance leadership; serves as HYI CCO reporting to Board on risk and controls |
| Legg Mason & Co. | Managing Director; Director of Compliance | 2006–2020 | Senior compliance leadership across Legg Mason fund complex |
| Legg Mason Global Asset Allocation | Chief Compliance Officer | Prior to 2014 | Fund-level CCO responsibilities |
| Legg Mason Private Portfolio Group | Chief Compliance Officer | Prior to 2013 | Fund-level CCO responsibilities |
| The Reserve Funds (investment adviser, funds, broker-dealer) | Chief Compliance Officer | 2004 | Oversight of adviser, funds, and broker-dealer compliance |
| Ambac Financial Group (investment adviser, funds, broker-dealer) | Compliance leadership | 2000–2003 | Oversight of adviser, funds, and broker-dealer compliance |
External Roles
None disclosed in HYI filings (no external public company board roles or committee memberships identified) .
Fixed Compensation
- Officers of HYI receive no compensation from the Fund; they may be reimbursed for reasonable out-of-pocket travel expenses for attending Board meetings .
Performance Compensation
- No fund-level bonus, equity (RSUs/PSUs), or option awards are provided to officers; no performance metrics (revenue growth, EBITDA, TSR) are tied to officer pay at the Fund level .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
- Section 16(a) compliance: HYI states that during the fiscal year ended May 31, 2025, all required beneficial ownership filings were met based on its review of copies or written representations .
- Group beneficial ownership: As of March 19, 2025, nominees, Directors and officers of the Fund as a group beneficially owned less than 1% of the outstanding shares of the Fund’s common stock .
- Individual holdings and pledging for Fred Jensen are not disclosed; HYI’s disclosures focus on directors’ dollar ranges, with no officer-specific ownership table .
Employment Terms
| Term | Disclosure |
|---|---|
| Appointment | Executive officers are chosen each year at a regular Board meeting to hold office until successors are duly elected and qualified or until death, resignation, or removal . |
| Compensation | Officers receive no compensation from the Fund; reimbursement permitted for reasonable out-of-pocket travel expenses to attend Board meetings . |
| Contract, severance, change-in-control | No employment agreements, severance, or change-of-control economics disclosed for officers at the Fund level . |
| Role to Board | CCO reports directly to the Board; meets regularly on risk, policies, procedures, and controls . |
Investment Implications
- Pay-for-performance alignment: HYI does not compensate officers, including the CCO, at the Fund level; therefore, there is no fund-level linkage between Jensen’s compensation and HYI’s performance metrics (no salary, bonus, RSUs/PSUs, or options), reducing traditional compensation-based trading signals .
- Insider selling pressure: With no fund-level equity grants to officers and group beneficial ownership below 1%, insider selling pressure tied to officer awards is negligible; individual officer holdings are not disclosed, further limiting signal value .
- Retention and continuity: Officers are appointed annually and serve until successors are qualified; absence of disclosed severance/change-of-control terms suggests reliance on Franklin Templeton employment structures rather than Fund-specific contracts, implying low visible fund-level retention risk but limited transparency into parent-level arrangements .
- Governance and execution: Jensen’s role is central to risk oversight—reporting directly to the Board and engaging on compliance and control matters—which is operationally critical for a registered investment company, though not directly indicative of HYI’s investment performance drivers .