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Plan Optimization
BY NAPA Net Staff | 1/30/2013
In a thought provoking and insightful piece, noted industry journalist Chris Carosa tackles the controversial question of whether the Morningstar star ratings are useful in predicting performance. If... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 1/30/2013
Will 401(k) plans become an important market for private equity and buyout firms like KKR? Recent reports in the business press, like Forbes and the Wall Street Journal, indicate that the possibility... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 1/25/2013
Picking up on the HelloWallet study showing how participants are tapping their 401(k) plans to pay bills, Time magazine this week raised the question of the effectiveness of the system. Though the... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 1/23/2013
Though the demand for active equity funds has fallen, with many companies experiencing net outflows (perhaps driven in DC plans by the growing popularity of TDFs), fees remained stable, according to... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 1/23/2013
While there has not been widespread adoption of retirement income products by plan sponsors, the need remains — for many reasons. Ultimately the question will not be whether these products will be... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 1/22/2013
Editor’s Note: This is the latest in a series of posts by speakers at the 2013 NAPA/ASPPA Summit, March 3-5, 2013 in Las Vegas. George Baumann of Invesco — who will team up with MassMutual’s John G.... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 1/22/2013
With the new opportunities for plan participants to convert previously non-distributable funds into a Roth under the American Taxpayer Relief Act, there may be a rush to offer this option — currently... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 1/14/2013
One of the challenges investment professionals face is figuring out effective ways of helping some clients become smarter about their decisions. This is one key to offsetting what Nobel Laureate... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 1/11/2013
While most DC plan participants are passive investors interested in pre-diversified products like target-date funds and managed accounts, there’s a second, smaller group of more sophisticated... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 1/8/2013
Roughly three-fourths of affluent investors perceive at least one major threat to their retirement security, but strategies for overcoming these threats vary by risk tolerance, according to a... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 1/8/2013
In his monthly “Investment Outlook,” PIMCO’s Bill Gross questions the long-term wisdom of the Fed’s continuing efforts to keep the economy growing by pumping in money to spur investments. As Ben... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 1/7/2013
MarketWatch columnist Chuck Jaffe hopes that Americans’ anger at Washington for waiting until the very last minute to address the fiscal cliff will be a lesson for those individuals who are putting... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 1/4/2013
Morningstar recently announced its Manager of the Year awards for 2012. Their criteria: managers must be Morningstar Medalists, must have generated strong long-term risk-adjusted returns, and must be... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 12/26/2012
Many firms provide market forecasts, but Morningstar has a few special things going for it — such as being unbiased (ostensibly) and having an analyst named Heather Brilliant. Ms. Brilliant’s... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 12/20/2012
Yet another life insurer, Sun Life, seems to have answered that question in the affirmative, announcing the sale of its U.S. annuity business to Guggenheim Partners’ Delaware Life Holdings division... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 12/19/2012
In an era of low interest rates and risky markets, should advisors consider recommending alternative investments like real estate? Before you say yes, consider these practical considerations:•... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 12/18/2012
Do we need another retirement scheme that fits somewhere between 401(k)s and Social Security? The answer is yes, according to Santa Clara professor Meir Statman. Too many people either don’t... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 12/14/2012
Behavioral Finance, or “Befi,” made famous in the DC world by UCLA professor Shlomo Benartzi, may be one of the most overused and least understood terms in our industry. Professionals from Sibson... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 12/13/2012
The death of mutual funds in 401(k) plans is greatly exaggerated, especially in smaller and mid-sized plans, according to a survey (free registration required) conducted by Cerulli with help from the... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 12/11/2012
Echoing the refrain from the Beatles classic, “Strawberry Fields Forever,” PIMCO’s Bill Gross predicts slower growth of the economy over the next decade, or a “new normal” of 2%. While it’s... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 12/11/2012
When you’re trying to help plan participants move the ball on their retirement planning, the first step can be the hardest: “unlearning” mistaken beliefs. Financial literacy can only be built on a... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 12/10/2012
With more money moving to passive strategies, there’s a subculture that falls under the rubric of “Smart Beta.” Smart Beta generally refers to non-market-cap-weighted, systematic strategies that aim... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 12/7/2012
How does a company reduce their 401(k) match without decreasing or eliminating it? IBM found a way: by holding it until the end of the year — which means that people other than retirees who leave... Read More
BY NAPA Net Staff | 12/7/2012
How times have changed. When the market was booming in the 1990s and parts of the 2000s, investors looked for ways to increase returns. Now, based on an online survey of 3,400 people age 55 or older... Read More
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