Products August 9, 2011

Mutual of Omaha Launches Interactive Benefit Planning Tool

Group benefits provider Mutual of Omaha has rolled out its Employee Benefits Information Center.
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The online planning tool was designed to work in conjunction with the company’s enrollment communications to help employees gain a more thorough understanding of their benefit offerings.  

The site’s features include:  

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  • Life and disability calculators that can estimate how much coverage an individual needs
  • Life and disability FAQs
  • A life expectancy tool  

The online tool gives employees the flexibility to do their own insurance research anytime, anywhere, and may encourage workers to learn more about the need for life and disability insurance.  

“We want employees to feel informed and educated when they’re making their enrollment decisions and we believe this site will help accomplish that,” commented Marty Traynor, Mutual of Omaha vice president of voluntary benefits.
Products August 9, 2011

Dow Jones Launches Shipping Industry Index

Dow Jones Indexes has launched its Global Shipping Index, which measures the performance of twenty-five dividend-paying companies in the shipping industry.
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The index universe includes all global shipping companies that transport primarily goods and materials, and excludes those that carry only passengers, as well as those that have a minimum float-adjusted market capitalization below $150 million or a three-month average daily trading volume below $2 million. Among these, the top 25 – as ranked by indicated annual dividend yield – are selected for the index.  

Funds in the index universe are also subject to buffers that aim to limit unnecessary turnover. The index is weighted by float-adjusted market capitalization. The weight of individual components in the index is capped at 20%, and components with weights of 4.5% or more are restricted in aggregate to 45% of the index. The index is reviewed annually in June; price and total return indexes are calculated in U.S. dollars.  

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The new index has been licensed to Guggenheim Funds, and will serve as the basis for that firm’s shipping exchange-traded fund (ETF). 

“The Dow Jones Global Shipping Index is designed to include companies that are poised to benefit from the global business recovery,” said Michael A. Petronella, President of Dow Jones Indexes. “These same component companies are also in position to take advantage of growing emerging-market demand for commodities and other goods.” 

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