Mutual funds

McCullough to Retire From DST as COO, With Hooley Replacing Him

Putnam Investments will waste no time reinvigorating its defined contribution business, and its long-struggling equity funds will have to earn their way into the mix, according to Robert L. Reynolds, its president and chief executive.

Over the past year, as the S&P 500 has hit 1997 levels, the U.S. gross domestic product shrank 6.2% in the fourth quarter of 2008 and investors' retirement savings have been severed in half, we have hailed the resilience of investors' faith in the markets. Our customers have continued to believe in the soundness of investing in mutual funds, the premise of long-term investing and modern portfolio theory, and the overall wisdom of saving for retirement.

85% of Advisers Believe Recession Will End by 2010

In order to achieve meaningful reform of the financial services industry, Congress should create two key regulatory positions to oversee financial markets, according to a proposal last week by the Investment Company Institute.

Mutual fund companies are finding that it's not too early to start tagging fund data with the international extensible business reporting language (XBRL) code the Securities and Exchange Commission has required them to begin using in July, though companies may find it's easier to outsource the job.

Growth fund managers typically seek out companies whose earnings increase 10% or more a year, but with the economy sagging, those managers are applying metrics they’ve never used before, The Wall Street Journal reports.

With stocks now worth less than 55% of their peak in October 2007—a decline of $11.1 trillion in market wealth—investor sentiment has been shattered and some market experts believe the process of finding the market bottom must begin all over again.

Investors who brought large balances to the table at brokerages or mutual fund companies have enjoyed breakpoints over the past few years. But with the market declining, many of those breakpoints will no longer apply, The Wall Street Journal reports.

Equity mutual funds suffered redemptions in 2008, only the third time in their history that they have had outflows. Actively managed funds lost $221.08 billion, while index funds took in $17.6 billion. "Some people who get their hands burned by these market drops move from active to passive [management], and every time some of them stay there," Scott Burns, an analyst with Morningstar, told Dow Jones. Passive investing "gains more converts" each time the market crashes.

Investors continued to seek safety in cash as money market mutual fund assets crept closer to $4 trillion, rising $17.94 billion for the week ending March 4 to $3.906 trillion, according to the Investment Company Institute.

Justin Leverenz, manager of the Oppenheimer Developing Markets fund, says emerging market economies are more agile than developed nations, and will likely soar out of the recession.

In response to the market downturn and wide confusion among investors about what they should do, Charles Schwab has published a number of articles on its website offering guidance. Schwab is also holding seminars at its branches, town hall discussions and webcasts.

Legg Mason announced Thursday that it has sold all $1.8 billion of the structured investment vehicles held at par value by its money market funds, the company and through a total return swap with a bank. The sale includes $1.4 billion of SIVs held by the money funds, $57 million by the company and $355 in the swap. All told, Legg Mason spent $1.2 billion on the transactions. It retains only $49 million in SIVs.“With the sales announced today, our money market funds are now completely SIV-free,” said Legg Mason Chairman and CEO Mark R. Fetting. “We are pleased that our business teams were able to resolve this issue and protect our money market franchise while our investment teams have focused on [their] goal of providing principal stability, credit quality and current income.”Fetting added: “In persistently difficult markets, we took this final proactive step not only to resolve the SIV issue, but also to keep our balance sheet strong. With the expected tax refund, we will have $1 billion in available cash” which will help “protect Legg Mason’s profitability.”

In spite of the market downturn, the trading services that Fidelity Investments provides for intermediaries is doing a brisk business, the company announced Thursday.Daily average commissionable trade, new breakaway brokers joining the platform, equity order flow, prime brokerage and adviser-sold 401(k) plans are all doing well. Combined, the divisions serving these markets had $1.1 trillion in assets under administration by the end of last year.Daily commissionable trades rose 18% in 2008 and averaged 259,000 and 314,000 in September and October. Fidelity also sold 702 new Fidelity Advisor 401(k) plans in 2008, up 36%. Money market assets rose 44% to a record $137 billion, and 102 breakaway brokers selected Fidelity as custodian.Assets in Fidelity’s prime brokerage services also rose, by 127%, aided by a 57% increase in new clients. “Despite arguably one of the most volatile business environments in recent memory, we repeatedly demonstrated our ability to help intermediary clients navigate challenging financial markets,” said Michael K. Clark, president of Fidelity Institutional Products Group. “Our ability in 2008 to achieve record trading volumes, equity order flow and institutional money market flows, among others, was a direct result of the trust our diverse base of clients placed in the strength and reputation of Fidelity,” Clark added.Even in this challenging market environment, Fidelity plans to continue to invest in these businesses’ technology, trading tools and services in 2009.“We are in an unprecedented business environment that is rapidly transforming the financial services industry, and those firms which do not have all the pieces to serve these converging markets and new financial business models will be at a competitive disadvantage,” Clark said.

Nearly 30% of long-term care costs are paid for out-of-pocket, according to research by Avalere Health, far higher than the 10% widely estimated previously. One of the reasons for the discrepancy, according to the public policy and research firm, is that Avalere has included assisted living costs.

Independent financial advisers are somewhat optimistic about the economy, with 44% saying they believe the recession will end this year, and another 41% pointing to next year, Charles Schwab found in a survey of 1,200 advisers.

Equity mutual funds suffered redemptions in 2008, only the third time in their history that they have had outflows. Actively managed funds lost $221.08 billion, while index funds took in $17.6 billion.

Will Danoff, manager of the Fidelity Contrafund, admits he was too bullish on technology and retail stocks, but says he was right to pass on low-priced financial services stocks.

Between a mixture of its conservative, low-cost fund offerings that appeal to investors in this time of market stress, and a performance-based compensation plan, Vanguard has been able to retain enough assets and keep costs down to avoid mass layoffs.