Data shared by FTSE Russell, taken from the firm’s annual smart beta survey, suggests the use of “multi-factor combination smart beta index-based investment strategies” by institutional investors has more than doubled since first measured in 2015.
In conversation with PLANADVISER, Northern Trust Asset Management’s head of quantitative research steps through some of the pros and cons of using factor-based portfolios and so called smart-beta strategies; he sees big opportunities, but also warns about the “dilution” phenomenon.
Get to know the winners of the 2018 Plan Sponsor of the Year awards; their stories can help your retirement plan clients generate new ideas and embrace progressive plan design.
About one in three Americans have less than $5,000 in retirement savings, and one in five have no individual private retirement savings at all, according to a new Northwestern Mutual study.
By the end of the calendar year 2017, the discount rate used by companies sponsoring pension plans in the S&P 500 had fallen to the lowest level measured in Goldman Sachs Asset Management’s long-running pension research series; at the same time, sponsors are making large voluntary contributions to take advantage of disappearing tax incentives.
The demand for 3(38) investment manager search support and monitoring has moved up market into the range of plans with billions of dollars in assets; smaller plans are seeking cost savings while larger plans are seeking deeper expertise and nimble capabilities.
Anne Ackerley, head of BlackRock’s defined contribution business, sat down last week with PLANADVISER to offer a sneak peek at the DCIO provider’s latest DC Pulse Survey; the data shows increased confidence among plan participants, while sponsors have emerging decumulation concerns.
Highlights from a new Natixis survey suggest reporting challenges continue to rank as top hurdle for institutions implementing ESG programs; this includes the concern that public companies may be “greenwashing” reported data to enhance their public image.
"In our experience, the way bond managers speak provides insight into their true thinking, underlying skills and biases," write Brett Wander and Jake Gilliam, two investing team leaders at Charles Schwab. "When we look for bond managers as sub-advisers, there are things we like to hear, but there are also things managers say that immediately trigger our alarms."
The Plan Sponsor of the Year annual award program recognizes retirement plan sponsors that show a commitment to their participants’ financial health and retirement success. The award is given in many categories to recognize all plan types. Please note that in order to view the finalists, you must be a registered user of PLANADVISER.com. It's free and takes just a minute to complete.
Strong stock market gains and a decrease in unemployment boost AICPA’s Personal Financial Satisfaction Index to a record high in the 24 years the trade group has been conducting this survey.
Recent criticism of public pensions’ sizable push into ESG investing echoes valid concerns voiced in the past—but the ecosystem of environmental, social and governance investing has matured in ways that remain unacknowledged by some critics.
Managed accounts offers unique personalization catered to a participant’s needs, but are the possible fiduciary mishaps worth implementing the product?
Few retirement plan investors may actually mirror their portfolios to a U.S. total market index—but there are still some important implications to be found in the record-setting performance of the Wilshire 5000, beyond the relative growth of small-cap and large-cap.
Public
Funds gained 3.6% at the median in the second quarter, slightly ahead of
Corporate Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) plans, at 3.2%, Northern Trust data shows.
The drivers behind a target-date manager offering open
architecture most commonly include the belief that participants benefit from
asset manager diversification and the need to outsource allocations to access best-in-class
strategies, Cerulli reports.
Personal Capital’s analysis of investing account fees offers
important perspective about the long-term impact of management expenses on
wealth generation.
