Howard J. Stock

Sales struggle as dwindling variable annuity riders make 1035 exchanges less likely, compelling insurers to reinvent the wheel, according to a study.

Non-traded real-estate investment trusts found favor last year with investors looking for dividend income without stock market volatility.

While massive deficits among some members of the European Union remain a risk, many solid equities are trading at a steep discount.

The new program provides advisor coverage for B and C clients as well as recruitment gaps.

The low interest rate environment is helping keep fixed annuity rates unattractively low, creating interest in income-paying alternatives.

With Medicare tax on the way, municipal bonds and Roth IRAs could prove key tools in wealthy clients’ tax-planning strategies.

The trust company highlights its value add in a series of upcoming print and web ads.

While customer satisfaction is relatively high at banks, customers’ fuses are getting shorter when it comes to poor service and fees.

A terrible January paved the way for an okay February, but green shoots are starting to appear, Kehrer-LIMRA’s Stathis said.

Overall sales of annuities through bank holding companies rose 0.5% to $2.62 billion last year, but the results were somewhat skewed.

Seven of 10 workers expect they’ll need a job in retirement; only 23% of retirees currently have jobs.

A Thornburg portfolio manager says dividend-paying stocks may be income-seeking investors’ best option right now.

Hedge funds have finally rebounded after the downturn shuttered 20% of such funds and burdened the rest with negative returns.

More wealthy people turn to financial planning to ease their minds.

For 27 months, investors have consistently favored fixed-income funds, a trend that shows no sign of abating.

While automatic enrollment is boosting target-date fund assets, plan participants are choosing them of their own accord, too.

A BofA/ML survey finds institutional investors overweight in equities confident the Fed won’t move on rates until the New Year.

Acquisitions by independent firms gets back on track after stumbling slightly in 2009.

McWhinney’s wealth management shakeup sends transaction brokers flying, but may set the stage for bank brokerage’s evolution.

An S&P analysis shows that small-cap value and mid-cap value investors earned around 10% in the first quarter.