Portfolio

A majority of wealth managers worry about non-business concerns such as the national debt, immigration, civil unrest and media bias, according to a new survey.

In the first half of the year, fewer than a third of U.S. domestic equity fund managers delivered annualized returns that outpaced the S&P Composite 1500.

Expenses fell by 20 basis points and risk-adjusted returns climbed 92 bps, according to the study.

Investor advocates, religious groups and proponents of ESG investing argue the changes are a gift to business lobbyists that will muzzle corporate critics.

“It’s not just a shiny object, it’s really about content,” the firm’s head of ETFs and indexed strategies said.

The firm’s new technology will allow advisors to “get into the weeds” of underlying portfolios with clients.

A State Street fund avoiding crude holdings has beaten the S&P 500 by 3.6 percentage points since its inception, generating an annual return of 12.9%.

The fund giants voted for 99% of U.S. directors proposed by the energy, utility, banking and automotive companies reviewed by nonprofit research group Majority Action.

“Investors are going into lower, more passive mutual funds because they don't want to pay the fees,” an expert says.

Bleakley Financial Group also picked up an ex-hedge fund portfolio manager while expanding its national footprint.