Portfolio

Who, if anyone, will be his successor?

Profits rose from a year earlier in its fiscal third quarter, but declined slightly from the previous quarter.

Rodger A. Lawson, 63, president of Fidelity Investments since 2007, will step down in March. The fund giant will likely select one or possibly three successors from its executive committee, Lawson announced in a briefing Wednesday.

The Supreme Court decided not to review a 401(k) fee lawsuit against Deere and Fidelity that was dismissed by a U.S. District Court in 2007, and again rebuffed a U.S. Court of Appeals a year ago.

With so many investors burned by the across-the-board dismal performance of 2008 and continued volatility into 2009, more are likely to conduct due diligence on hedge funds and exercise greater market discipline, said speakers at a recent conference hosted by Cayman Islands law firm Walkers.

Fitch Ratings has revised its ratings on seven money market funds to its highest score, following the launch of its new rating criteria and rating scale.

Jefferies on Wednesday launched the TR/J CRB Wildcatters Exploration & Production ETF, an exchange-traded fund that tracks the Thomson Reuters/Jefferies CRB Wildcatters Energy E&P Equity Index and trades on NYSE Arca.

In an effort to help educate investors, the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board yesterday issued a “fact sheet” containing seven questions they can ask their financial professionals when considering investing in municipal bonds.

Claim SEC Exceeded Its Authority

While 64% of life insurance producers say they are “very likely” to stay with their current company, almost 20% would consider switching firms if the company culture, style and support more closely matched their own, according to a new study entitled “It’s All About Me,” published by LIMRA, a worldwide research, consulting and professional development organization.