The Markets

Did advice help participants avoid panic selling in August?

“Understanding how risk factors into your plan can help build financial confidence,” says Marcy Keckler, with Ameriprise Financial.

However, Corporate ERISA plans were the relative best performer among plan types last quarter.

Fixed-indexed annuities are posing a threat to traditional variable annuities, according to new research from Cerulli Associates.

Often, investment jargon is designed to market and not to inform, says Segal Rogerscasey’s CIO Tim Barron.

Fortune 1000 companies with frozen pension plans went conservative in 2014, while open plans took a bit more risk.

University researchers found institutional investors using concentrated investment strategies fared better than more diversified investors.

A white paper discusses some of the ways plan sponsors can put alternative assets into a DC plan.

Several large-volume retirement plan providers have recently published research highlighting strong performance in clients’ managed accounts.

“Cost is not dispositive of prudence,” says Eugene Maloney with Federated Investors.

Plan sponsors need to understand the implications of how their plan’s TDFs may be affected by changing exposures to international stocks and bonds.

Investment managers surveyed by Northern Trust have changed their views since the second quarter.

A quarterly update from BlackRock shows estimated cost of future retirement income rose slowly but steadily in the third quarter. 

It’s rarely a good move to trade on emotion, but it does make sense to revisit risk tolerance during times of volatility.

Investor demand for international equity offerings tumbled again, attracting just $3.8 billion in September, according to Strategic Insight.

The features of cash balance plans that make them easier to understand and make costs more predictable also create opportunity for advisers with skill structuring DB investments.

Including company stock as an investment plan option comes with pros and cons.

GIC/stable value, money market and bond funds again saw the most inflows over the month.

The characteristics and nuances of stable value products can vary, but all offer guarantees and principal protection.

Cerulli Associates finds “fiduciary fears” are supporting flows into lower-cost, passive products, but many plan sponsors overestimate their ability to mitigate fiduciary liability through indexed investments.