ETF Assets Grow by $49 Billion in September
As of September 28, 2007, 560 exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the U.S., managed by 17 ETF managers, had assets totaling approximately $554 billion, according to State Street’s ETF...
The Markets
Participants in Lifestyle Funds Outperform Do-it-Yourselfers
Participants investing in a single lifestyle, risk-based, fund had ending account balances that were 11% higher than those not using the funds over a 10-year period, according to...
F-Squared Launches Actively Managed Mutual Fund Indexes
F-Squared Investments, LLC, has launched an industry index portfolio dedicated to indexes constructed of a select number of actively managed mutual funds.
Zacks Launches Securities-Based Lifecycle Indexes
Zacks Investment Research, Inc. has launched a lifecycle index series, which includes four target retirement dates.
Morningstar Alters Variable Annuities Ranking and Rating Methods
Morningstar, Inc., is revising the way it rates and ranks group variable annuities by comparing group variable annuities to open-end mutual funds rather than individual variable annuities.
ETF Assets Pass $507 Billion in August
The combined assets of the nation's exchange-traded funds (ETFs) increased by $18.25 million, or 3.7%, to $507.11 billion in August, according to the Investment Company Institute (ICI).
PA NC: It’s All Your Default: QDIA Essentials
A panel of industry professionals at PLANADVISER’s National Conference in Orlando, Florida, discussed the faults with defaults and how to remedy them.
Money Fund Managers Concentrating on Safety Says S&P
A new Standard and Poor’s study found that money fund managers are concentrating on safety and liquidity and downplaying yield.
According to ICI, 401(k) Investors Get a Good Deal
At a time when the level of plan fees and the extent of their disclosure are a key issue in the retirement services space, a mutual fund trade...
IndexIQ Leaps into the Asset Management Business
IndexIQ has launched an asset management business that will be led by Austin “Gus″ Fleites, the former Chief Investment Officer and head of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) at ProShares.
S&P : A Bleak August for Emerging, Developed Equities
Standard&Poor’s said Tuesday the world’s emerging and developed equity markets posted negative returns in August, with emerging markets dropping 1.94% and developed markets giving back 0.36% over the...
ETF Assets Reach $505B in August
U.S. listed ETF assets rose by approximately $23 billion in August with size, sector, style, and fixed income ETFs experiencing considerable asset growth.
S&P Launches Fixed Income Index
Standard&Poor’s has launched the S&P National Municipal Bond Index.
Dow Jones, Barron’s Team on New Stock Index
Dow Jones Indexes has teamed up with sister entity Barron's to launch a new index.
Principal Funds Announces Expansion of Investment Only Strategy
Principal Funds is ramping up its investment only (IO) strategy aimed at third-party platforms.
Janus Twenty Fund to Change Skippers
Janus Capital Group Inc. has announced that Scott Schoelzel, portfolio manager of Janus Twenty Fund, will leave the firm at the end of 2007.
Mutual Funds See Positive Inflows in July
A month after suffering a $2.7-billion outflow, mutual funds ducked back into solid positive territory in July with $26.7 billion in inflows, according to data from the Financial...
Vanguard Proposes Benchmarking Approach for Target-Date Funds
Return-expectations and savings sufficiency can be more efficient benchmarks for target-date funds than are those used currently, according to a new paper from Vanguard Investment Counseling and Research.