Products February 7, 2013

Vanguard to Further Diversify TDFs

Vanguard plans to add an international bond index fund to 20 all-in-one funds, including Vanguard Target Retirement Funds.
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The international bond component will complement the three other core holdings of Vanguard’s all-in-one funds: Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund, Vanguard Total International Stock Index Fund and Vanguard Total Bond Market II Index Fund.  

Vanguard’s 12 Target Retirement Funds, four LifeStrategy Funds, two of its three Managed Payout Funds and two Vanguard Variable Insurance Funds will apportion 20% of their respective fixed-income allocations to the new Vanguard Total International Bond Index Fund, which is in registration with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). (See “Vanguard to Debut International Bond Index Fund.”)

In addition, Vanguard Short-Term Inflation-Protected Securities Index Fund (Short-Term TIPS Fund) will replace Vanguard Inflation-Protected Securities Fund in the three Target Retirement Funds that offer exposure to TIPS: the Target Retirement Income, 2010 and 2015 Funds. The Short-Term TIPS Fund will have initial weightings in the Target Retirement Income, 2010 and 2015 Funds of 17%, 11% and 4%, respectively.

The overall strategic asset allocation and glidepath of the Target Retirement Funds will not change. The addition of hedged international bonds represents a refinement of the funds’ fixed-income component, bringing long-term diversification benefits. An allocation to short-term TIPS provides retirees and preretirees with improved inflation protection with less volatility.  

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The Short-Term TIPS Fund, which features an average duration of less than three years, will replace the Inflation-Protected Securities Fund, which has a current average duration of 8.5 years. The Short-Term TIPS Fund seeks to track the performance of the Barclays U.S. Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS) 0-5 Year Index, a market-weighted index that measures the performance of inflation-protected public obligations of the U.S. Treasury with a remaining maturity of less than five years. As of December 31, the index had an average duration of 2.5 years and an average maturity of 2.6 years.

Products February 7, 2013

MassMutual Announces 2013 Seminar Agenda

MassMutual’s 2013 RetireSmart participant seminar series is focused on helping plan participants take action and make smarter decisions about their finances.
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MassMutual’s first live online seminar for 2013 takes place Wednesday, February 13, at 12 p.m. EST. Personal finance, investment and tax adviser Gary Schatsky’s 30-minute presentation, “Finding an Investment Strategy in Uncertain Times,” will help participants make retirement planning improvements, understand how market fluctuations and tax planning may impact their retirement and learn how to become a more confident investor. The session will conclude with a 30-minute interactive question and answer session. Participants may submit questions in advance by posting to the Division’s Facebook page at www.facebook.com/retiresmart.     

Remaining topics for the 2013 RetireSmart seminar series (and tentative dates) include: 

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  • March 28, 2013: Understanding Today’s World Economy. To be presented by returning guest speaker Dr. Jerry Webman, Ph.D., CFA, and chief economist for OppenheimerFunds Inc.  
  • May 8, 2013: Do Women Invest Differently? To be presented by returning guest speaker Farnoosh Torabi, an independent Generation Y money coach, best-selling author and personal finance journalist.  
  • June 2013: Are You Insured Enough? To be presented by a member of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC).  
  • August 7, 2013: Save More without BIG Sacrifices. To be presented by Farnoosh Torabi.  
  • October 2013: Estate Planning Forum—Ask the Expert. To be presented by a member of the National Association of Estate Planners & Councils (NAEPC). 
  • November 13, 2013: New Rules for Saving Money. To be presented by Farnoosh Torabi.  

Space for these seminars is prioritized to retirement plan sponsors and participants on MassMutual’s platform. MassMutual retirement plan clients can preregister for any upcoming RetireSmart seminar as well as access on-demand replays to past seminars covering a variety of financial topics at www.retiresmartseminars.com.  

For more information about MassMutual Retirement Services, call MassMutual at 1-866-444-2601.

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