Fidelity Investments’ plan to subject more of its adviser-sold mutual funds to performance-fee adjustments got a chilly response last week from some financial advisers who said such incentives could encourage funds to take on too much risk.
PHILADELPHIA — WisdomTree Investments Inc. of New York is betting that when it comes to fundamental indexing — indexes weighted not by market capitalization but by other factors — the simpler, the better.
NEW YORK — Advisers with clients who need life insurance for tax minimization and wealth transfer may want to consider a new policy geared to that market.
The Vanguard Group Inc., which long has espoused the virtues of buy-and-hold investing, is encouraging hedge funds — which rank among the most frenetic of investors — to invest in its exchange traded funds.
Waddell & Reed Financial Inc., an asset management firm started by two World War I pilots, is winning its turnaround battle so far, but some observers say that the upshot ultimately will be to fix it or sell it.
Add class action litigation to the regulatory controversies, bad press and other woes plaguing insurers that sell equity index annuities.
Industry leaders are concerned that insurance companies are taking on too much risk from annuities that offer guaranteed-withdrawal benefits for the life of the client. Financial services leaders worry that if baby boomers live longer than projected or a downturn hits the market, the financial strength of insurance companies could be threatened.
BOSTON — Although it is too early to tell whether their winning streaks will continue, Fidelity Magellan Fund and Janus Worldwide Fund — two large mutual funds that have struggled to beat their benchmarks of late — are off to decent starts in 2007.
When banks and brokers first started offering health savings accounts, clients could choose any investment they wanted for their account funds — as long as it was a certificate of deposit.
WASHINGTON — The SEC’s efforts to protect hedge fund investors have stirred up free market enthusiasts, who are making it clear they don’t want the government limiting their investment options.
NEW YORK — A securities law firm is seeking class action status for clients who may have been financially damaged by an insurer’s threats and commission incentives designed to skew adviser judgment in favor of proprietary products.
NEW YORK — John Hancock Life Insurance Co. of Boston this month introduced a policy that guarantees cash values to a greater extent than other types of whole life insurance.
PHILADELPHIA — Real estate investment trusts have outperformed the broad market for seven years, so it isn’t surprising that exchange traded fund providers want in on the action.
A trade group for the variable annuity industry today announced a technology initiative intended to save time and money for VA distributors through streamlining and standardization.
The practice of borrowing company stock to manipulate the outcome of company votes has piqued the interest of the Securities and Exchange Commission and has rekindled a debate over stock lending.
Baby boomers who are retiring and rolling over their 401(k) money favor mutual fund wrap programs even though many are wealthy enough to qualify for separately managed accounts, industry observers say.
PHILADELPHIA — When it comes to new indexes, those that eschew weightings based on market capitalization are all the rage.
BOSTON — Just because the Enron Corp. and market-timing scandals have led to greater disclosure requirements doesn’t mean that some mutual fund companies aren’t still burying some doozies in their regulatory filings, according to Russel Kinnel, director of mutual fund research for Morningstar Inc.
A congressman who raised eyebrows last month when he seemed to imply that annuities are the answer to the need for lifetime retirement income claims he was misunderstood.
IXIS Asset Management Distributors LP, which saw its main sales channel dry up in 2000, has stemmed the tide of outflows and now ranks among the nation’s 10 best-selling mutual fund firms.
