SSgA Announces New Benchmarks for Five SPDR ETFs

State Street Global Advisors (SSgA) announced changes to the indices and names of five financial industry SPDR exchange-traded funds (ETFs). 

Effective October 24, 2011, the five SPDR ETFs will seek to track S&P Select Industry Indices that provide access to the same market segments as funds’ current index and offer broader diversification and reduced concentration risk.
 The changes will affect the following ETFs:
 

Current ETF Name 

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Current Index Name 

New ETF Name 

New Index Name 

SPDR KBW Bank ETF (KBE)

KBW Bank Index

 

SPDR S&P Bank ETF (KBE)

 

S&P Banks Select Industry Index

 

SPDR KBW Capital Markets ETF (KCE)

 

KBW Capital Markets Index

 

SPDR S&P Capital Markets ETF (KCE)

 

S&P Capital Markets Select Industry Index

 

SPDR KBW Insurance ETF (KIE)

 

KBW Insurance Index

 

SPDR S&P Insurance ETF (KIE)

 

S&P Insurance Select Industry Index

 

SPDR KBW Mortgage Finance ETF (KME)

 

KBW Mortgage Finance Index

 

SPDR S&P Mortgage Finance ETF (KME)

 

S&P Mortgage Finance Select Industry Index

 

SPDR KBW Regional Banking ETF (KRE)

 

KBW Regional Banking Index

 

SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF (KRE)

 

S&P Regional Banks Select Industry Index

 

The funds’ ticker symbols and expense ratios will not change.

“As a leading manager of industry and sector ETFs, we are constantly reviewing the SPDR ETF offering to improve access to a wide range of asset classes,” said James Ross, Senior Managing Director and Global Head of SPDR Exchange-Traded Funds. “In addition to unifying our industry SPDR ETFs around a single index provider, the new S&P indices offer investors greater diversification and a rules-based methodology that enhances transparency.”

Allianz Launches Educational Videos on Annuities

Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America has launched a three-part animated series to help investors better understand annuities.

In The ABCs of Annuities series, each three- to five-minute segment explores a different topic: Retirement Realities, Annuity Basics, and Annuity Myths and Truths. The animated videos address why it’s important to take an active role in planning for retirement, how annuities can fit into a well-rounded retirement plan, and how today’s annuities have evolved from those in the past.  

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A recent Allianz study found that for the second year in a row,boomers remain more attracted to guarantees for their retirement savings than potential high returns with market risk (see “Boomers Desire Guarantees More than High Returns“).  

However, annuities face a number of misperceptions, says Katie Libbe, Vice President of Consumer Insights at Allianz Life. More than half of the respondents in the Allianz Life study expressed distaste for the word “annuity”— even after describing an annuity-like product as their ideal financial vehicle. Moreover, annuities continue to be seen as very confusing, and many people admitted their opinions were formed 10 to 20 years ago, and that they hadn’t researched annuities since.  

To access The ABCs of Annuities, visit www.allianzlife.com/GetInformed/ABC_Annuities.aspx.

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