| | Benefits & Administration | | Health System Offers to Cash Out Pensions Early | | Realizing its pension plan is unsustainable, the
Singing River Health System in Mississippi is offering employees the option to
cash out now. Employees were sent an email offering them the option to receive
a lump sum payment equal to their total prior contributions, with interest
calculated at the three month treasury rate over the life of their
contributions. They were also presented with the option of rolling their prior
contributions into a new defined benefit pension plan that will provide a
defined benefit which is lower than the one in the old plan.Read more > | | | Research | | 2014 403(b) Buyer’s Guide: Notable Distinctions | | Since the passage of Internal Revenue Service
(IRS) rules in 2007, many 403(b) plans have evolved to look more like their
401(k) counterparts. Still, differences and distinctions remain, and providers
that are knowledgeable about those variables and can supply appropriate
services and guidance are valuable to the 403(b) marketplace.Read more > | | | Products, Deals & People | | Managed account and investment services provider
Financial Engines announced Lawrence Raffone will succeed Jeffrey Maggioncalda
as chief executive officer of the firm, effective January 1, 2015.Read more > | | | Economic Events | | Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by
214,000 in October, and the unemployment rate edged down to 5.8%, the U.S.
Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. Employment increased in food services and
drinking places, retail trade, and health care.
THE
ECONOMIC WEEK AHEAD: Wednesday,
the Census Bureau will report about wholesale inventories for September. Thursday, the Department of Labor will
issue its initial claims report. Friday,
the Census Bureau will report about retail sales for October and business
inventories for September.
| | | Market Mirror | | Friday, the
Dow was up 19.46 points (0.11%) at 17,573.93, the NASDAQ slipped 5.94 points
(0.13%) to 4,632.53, and the S&P 500 increased by 0.71 (0.03%) to 2,031.92.
The Russell 2000 increased by 1.46 (0.12%) to 1,173.32, and the Wilshire 5000
closed 22.02 points (0.10%) higher at 21,381.83.
On the NYSE,
3.2 billion shares traded, with 1.6 advancing issues for every declining issue.
On the NASDAQ, 2.7 billion shares changed hands, with a slight lead for
decliners.
The yields
for the 10-year Treasury note and 30-year Treasury bond were 2.301% and 3.027%,
respectively.
WEEK’S
WORTH: For the week ending November 7, the Dow climbed
1.05%, the NASDAQ increased 0.04%, and the S&P 500 closed 0.69% higher. The
Russell 2000 decreased 0.02%, and the Wilshire 5000 was up 0.59%.
| | | Compliance | | DOL Secures $2M in Health Benefit Restorations | | The U.S. Department of Labor has secured a
nearly $2 million voluntary correction by Cox Enterprises Inc. after the
Atlanta, Georgia-based company violated the Employee Retirement Income Security
Act. Cox
Enterprises has voluntarily restored $1,986,918 to 4,564 affected participants.
The company reprocessed all adult preventive care services claims that had
previously been denied because they exceeded the plan’s annual limit of $500 in
plan years 2011 and 2012 or $750 in 2013.Read more > | | | Investing | | Risk Tolerance Profiles Miss Key Questions | | Measuring risk tolerance is critical, say
experts in the field of risk tolerance and decisionmaking, but few retirement
plan sponsors and advisers in the U.S. do it correctly. Most retirement plan
advisers and plan sponsors are not getting at the investor’s real risk profile
because they do not ask the right questions, contends Tyler Nunnally, a U.S. strategist
for the Australian financial services company FinaMetrica.Read more > | | Professionally managed assets of U.S. investors
reached $36.8 trillion in 2013, according to a new analysis from investment
analytics firm Cerulli Associates. Institutional client assets grew at a strong rate
(10.6%) in 2013, with a 5.5% growth rate over the last 10 years. The growth in
professionally managed institutional client assets has in large part been
driven by strong growth in participation at employer-sponsored defined
contribution (DC) retirement plans.Read more > | | A Researcher’s Argument Against TDFs | | Baby Boomers and Millennials stand at opposite
ends of the career pathway. Does this mean their retirement investments should
be opposites as well? Not necessarily, says Noah Beck, who conducts
quantitative equity research and portfolio support for investment services firm
Research Affiliates. In a recent analysis, Beck suggests the plethora of
portfolio risks confronting Millennials and Boomers are not so different,
meaning both demographics may benefit from sticking to more conventional
portfolio strategies invested in mainstream stocks, mainstream bonds, and
diversifying inflation hedges.Read more > | | | Small Talk | | Last week’s FRIDAY FILES links did not work for
the majority of readers. We apologize for the technical problems. You can find
last week’s FRIDAY FILES, including a video of Jim Carrey’s take on the Matthew
McConaughey Lincoln ads and what your handwriting says about you, here.Read more > | | ON THIS DATE: In
1775, the Continental Congress
approved a resolution creating the Continental Marines, giving birth to the
United States Marine Corps. In 1903,
the patent office awarded U.S. Patent No. 743,801 to a Birmingham, Alabama,
woman named Mary Anderson for her “window cleaning device for electric
cars and other vehicles to remove snow, ice or sleet from the window.” In 1958, Conway Twitty scored his very
first No. 1 hit on the pop charts, with the rock-and-roll ballad “It’s
Only Make Believe.” In 1969,
“Sesame Street,” a pioneering TV show that would teach generations of
young children the alphabet and how to count, among other things, made its
broadcast debut. In 1982, in
Washington, D.C., the Vietnam Veterans Memorial was opened to visitors. In 1999, Ted Danson received a star on the
Hollywood Walk of Fame. | | SURVEY SAYS: Real Estate Investments | | Last week, I asked NewsDash readers, “Does your
plan include real estate investments? Are you considering them? If not, why
not?” Sixty percent of respondents said they use real estate investments in
their DB plans, and 30% who are not, are considering using them. Fifty-eight
percent of respondents offer a stand-alone (not part of an asset allocation
fund) real estate investment in their DC plans, and only 8% who don’t are
considering offering one. Among those who do not offer and are not considering
adding real estate investments in their plans, more than 28% cite the lack of
participant interest as the reason, while 43% cite concerns about liquidity of
the investment(s). “Other” responses (42.8%) include that real estate
investments are too complex for DC plans, the recordkeeper does not allow it
due to the difficulty in valuing real estate, and “We believe a diversified
Real Asset offering is better for participants.” Thanks to all who participated
in our survey!Read more > | | Share the good news with a friend! Pass the Dash along – and tell your
friends/associates they can sign up for their own copy.Read more > | | News from PLANSPONSOR.com
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