Products September 27, 2012

OppenheimerFunds Expands Class I Shares Fund Lineup

With the expansion of its Class I Shares lineup to 21 funds, OppenheimerFunds aims to provide greater transparency into defined contribution (DC) plan fees.
Reported by

“The recently enacted 401(k) fee disclosure rules have elevated the role of institutional investment consultants and advisers in helping clients both minimize defined contribution plan fees and present them clearly to plan participants,” said Kathleen Beichert, senior vice president of retirement marketing. “OppenheimerFunds has expanded its I Shares lineup to offer greater choice to plans that prefer to pay advisory and recordkeeping fees separately with an eye toward making fee details more transparent to retirement savers.”

OppenheimerFunds has also introduced services to help financial advisers benchmark and optimize their plans. “We expect the implementation of fee disclosures to cause some disruption in the market as plans review their recordkeeping, investment and advisory relationships,” said Beichert.

Never miss a story — sign up for PLANADVISER newsletters to keep up on the latest retirement plan adviser news.

Demand for Class I shares has also been fueled by institutional clients and the consultants that serve them, Kim Mustin, Oppenheimer’s senior vice president and head of global strategic accounts, said.

Among Oppenheimer fund share classes, I Shares generally carry the lowest expense ratios and do not charge 12b-1 or sub-transfer agency fees. Class I shares are only offered to eligible institutional investors that make a minimum initial investment of $5 million or more (waived for retirement plan service provider platforms). Class I shares are sold at net asset value without a sales charge. 

 

(Cont...)

The Oppenheimer funds for which I Shares are available are:  

  • Oppenheimer Developing Markets (ODVIX)
  • Oppenheimer Main Street Fund (OMSIX)
  • Oppenheimer International Small Company Fund (OSCIX)
  • Oppenheimer Capital Appreciation Fund (OPTIX)
  • Oppenheimer Global Fund (OGLIX)
  • Oppenheimer International Bond (OIBIX)
  • Oppenheimer Global Opportunities (OGIIX)
  • Oppenheimer Discovery (ODIIX)
  • Oppenheimer Global Strategic Income (OSIIX)
  • Oppenheimer Equity Income (OEIIX)
  • Oppenheimer Value (OGRIX)
  • Oppenheimer Small- & Mid-Cap Value (QSCIX)
  • Oppenheimer Global Allocation (QGRIX)
  • Oppenheimer Rising Dividends (OIRDX)
  • Oppenheimer International Growth (OIGIX)
  • Oppenheimer Core Bond (OPBIX)
  • Oppenheimer Commodity Strategy Total Return (QRAIX)
  • Oppenheimer Global Value (GLVIX)
  • Oppenheimer International Diversified (OIDIX)
  • Oppenheimer Real Estate (OREIX)
  • Oppenheimer Global Multi Strategies (OAIIX) 

 

Data & Research September 27, 2012

Study Links Savings Goals With Plan Access

Most workers who are likely to focus on retirement savings have access to an employer-provided retirement plan, according to the Investment Company Institute.
Reported by

In 2011, nearly three-quarters of workers most likely to be focused on saving for retirement had access to a retirement plan—including defined benefit (DB) and defined contribution (DC) plans—through their own employer or their spouse’s employer, and 93% of those with access participated.  

“Who Gets Retirement Plans and Why, 2011,” a study by the Investment Company Institute, finds a link between the savings goals of employees and the likelihood that they work for an employer who sponsors a retirement plan. When asked the primary reason they save, younger and lower-income households are typically focused on saving to fund education, to purchase a house, to fund other purchases, or to have emergency cash on hand. They are less likely to cite retirement as the primary reason they save.   

For more stories like this, sign up for the PLANADVISERdash daily newsletter.

In contrast, older and higher-earning workers are more likely to save primarily for retirement. Consistent with these savings preferences, groups of workers who are more focused on saving for retirement are also much more likely to work for an employer that offers a plan.

 

(Cont...)

Among all private-sector wage and salary workers ages 21 to 64, 50% work for an employer that sponsors a retirement plan. Among full-time, full-year workers ages 30 to 64, employer sponsorship increases to 60%.   

If the analysis is narrowed further to those groups of workers most likely to be focused on saving for retirement—workers ages 30 and older with at least moderate levels of earnings, and all but the lowest earning workers ages 45 and older, then 69% work for an employer that sponsors a plan and 74% have access to a retirement plan through either their own employer or their spouse’s employer. The 93% participation rate among those within this group with access to a retirement plan further demonstrates their interest in retirement savings.  

“Policy discussions surrounding retirement often focus on the headline statistic that about 50% of America’s workers are covered by a workplace retirement plan,” said Peter Brady, ICI senior economist and a coauthor of the study. “This study shows that older, full-time workers are much more likely to have access to an employer-sponsored retirement plan. So, looking at the percentage of all workers who have coverage today understates the share of the population who will reach retirement having accrued employer-provided retirement benefits. Young workers don’t remain young throughout their entire working career and many part-time workers don’t remain part-time throughout their entire working career. Many workers who do not have access to an employer plan today will have access prior to retirement.”  

The study report is at http://www.ici.org/pdf/per18-04.pdf.

 

«