[Correction: This article originally stated that there were three AdvisorShares ETFs in registration, but the firm's original two filings were withdrawn from registration recently. Only the AdvisorShares Dent Tactical ETF is still in registration.] 

Harry Dent Jr., who has been called the "Sage of Doom and Gloom" among money managers, apparently is preparing to run an actively managed exchange-traded fund.

In a new filing, AdvisorShares Investments is asking the Securities and Exchange Commission to approve the Dent Tactical ETF, which would trade on the New York Stock Exchange Arca platform. 

Dent runs HS Dent Investment Management, which is based in Tampa, Fla.

He was well-panned in the media for his book "The Roaring 2000s," which appeared in bookstores just before stocks entered one of the biggest crashes in history.

Dent's latest book is titled, "The Great Depression Ahead." As such, and based on past pessimistic forecasts, Dent has been criticized in some circles as overly downbeat and focused too much on doom-and-gloom forecasts.

But as IU.com contributor Allan Roth has noted, that's not entirely true. The economist and self-styled maverick money manager seems to be quite rosy when markets are up, but quite dour when they fall. That could relate to the focus of Dent's stock-picking strategies on specific demographic and consumer spending trends. In the case of the U.S. and other developed markets around the world, such an emphasis doesn't always lead to positive outlooks.  

The former Bain & Co. consultant has a long history of making bold predictions, some of which have turned out to be true. But others haven't, which Dent has been forthcoming in pointing out. But this isn't his first foray into fund management. 

As Roth noted in a recent column, the AIM Dent Demographic Trends Fund (ADDAX) was merged into another fund with about 80% of its assets depleted. The fund it was merged into has since been closed as well. Roth observed that Dent at the time blamed the merger on poor performance.

(Roth's piece, in which he actually talks to Roth at a recent book signing, explores Roth's record a bit and explains his strategy. You can read it in IU.com's research section here.)

Earlier in the week, the Washington, D.C.-based AdvisorShares announced it had signed an agreement with Dent's firm to "provide a packaged investment strategy utilizing HS Dent's proprietary demographic research and relative strength," according to a statement at the time.

In the new filing, no pricing was listed for the proposed new ETF. Earlier this year filed for two other ETFs, which have since been witdrawn from registration. (You can find links to those filings here.)

The Washington, D.C.-based AdvisorShares is a start-up. Its chief executive, Noah Hamman, discussed the firm's strategy of broadening the actively managed ETF field in a Q&A with IndexUniverse.com's Murray Coleman in November 2008. He also alluded to bringing in well-known, respected managers to serve as subadvisers and explained how the fund family planned to deal with transparency issues. (See the interview here.)

The registration statement and prospectus for the Dent Tactical ETF can be found here.