At the Bell

SEC staff urges

fee disclosures

* The dollar amount of fees paid by mutual fund investors should be disclosed in semiannual and annual shareholder reports, the Securities and Exchange Commission staff insisted.

The recommendation was made by the division of investment management in a staff report on mutual fund fees released last week. The requirement would have to be approved by the commission in order to take effect.

Half pass the exam for status as CFP

* The Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards of Denver announced last week that 1,006 of the 2,102 people who took the last CFP certification test passed it.

The 10-hour, two-day exam was held at 47 sites throughout the country in November. Since the exam’s inception in 1991, 15,103 people, or 57%, of those who have taken the test have passed.

The next exam is scheduled for March 16 and 17, and the deadline for applications is Jan. 31.

Foliofn adds service

* Foliofn Inc. announced last week the launch of Folio Advisor. Investment advisers can use Folio Advisor, the investment adviser version of Folio Investing, to offer custom stock portfolios under a variety of pricing options including a low fee with no minimums, commissions or transaction charges.

Neuberger adds managing director

* Steven A. Kapen has joined Neuberger Berman Inc. of New York to beef up its effort to manage money for rich investors, the company said Friday. Mr. Kapen is a managing director in Neuberger Berman’s private-asset management group and will run about $250 million.

He was a senior vice president and portfolio manager with Fiduciary Trust Co. International.

Holiday sales top low expectations

* Holiday retail sales weren’t as disappointing as originally believed, according to the Department of Commerce.

Figures released Friday show that sales in the general merchandise category for November and December were $195 billion, 5.3% higher than in 1999.

“Certainly, retailers faced many challenges [last] year in addition to a slowing economy – bad weather, skyrocketing energy costs, and election and economic uncertainty,” said Rosalind Wells, chief economist of the National Retail Federation.

According to Ms. Wells, general merchandise and apparel retailers performed best this past season, with 5.8% and 7% gains, respectively. Sales in furniture and home furnishings stores rose 2.3%.

The MSCI Retailing Index had risen 2.27% this year as of Thursday. It fell 29.64% in 2000.

Schafer out as head

of 3 Strong funds

* David Schafer is stepping down as the portfolio manager of three funds: the Strong Schafer Value Fund, the Strong Schafer Balanced Fund and the Strong Schafer Fund II. Charles Rinaldi will take his place. Mr. Schafer will remain the chairman of Schafer Cullen Capital Management.

At the same time, Strong Capital Management Inc. is exercising an option to buy out Schafer Capital Management Inc.’s position in the two companies’ four-year-old joint venture, Strong Schafer Capital Management. The companies did not disclose terms.

SEC urges input

on options votes

* Arthur Levitt, chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, last week urged institutional investors and investor advocates to weigh in on Nasdaq and New York Stock Exchange proposals that would allow shareholders to vote on company plans of issuing stock options to company officers as well as other em-

ployees.

The Big Board and Nasdaq made the proposals after Mr. Levitt called for such action. Shareholder approval currently isn’t required as long as half of the option grants go to employees other than the directors and officers.