Products May 1, 2002

Principal Launches New Retirement Plan Offering

January 17, 2001 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - The Principal Financial Group has launched its Principal Advantage program, including Principal Investors Fund, a series mutual fund comprised of 35 investment portfolios sub-advised by a variety of name-brand institutional money managers.
Reported by

Chris Bowman, vice president of marketing at the Principal told PLANSPONSOR.com that the offering represents a major new distribution channel for the Principal, which hopes to expand its current offerings to the financial planner market.

Bowman described the program as designed “from the ground up” with this market in mind.  The program includes mutual funds dedicated to each of the nine Morningstar domestic-stock style boxes. 

Affiliated and unaffiliated sub-advisors to the fund include:

  • Alliance Capital Management
  • American Century
  • BT Funds Management
  • Federated
  • Invista Capital Management
  • Morgan Stanley Asset Management
  • Neuberger Berman
  • Turner Investment Partners
  • Principal Capital Income Investors
  • Principal Capital Real Estate Investors.

The Principal Advantage program and Principal Investors Fund are targeted at employers with $3 million or more in retirement funds. 

Plan sponsors with more than $10 million in assets can access “preferred” fund classes, with expense ratios roughly 15 basis points less than those available to plans with $3 – $10 million in assets.

Principal Advantage customers soon will have access to mutual funds, stocks, bonds and other securities through a new self-directed brokerage account planned for April 2001.  Bowman said Principal will be teaming up with another provider to offer that service, but was not able to disclose the name at this time. 

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