American Skandia
SHELTON, Conn. - American Skandia Trust named Robertson, Stephens to subadvise a new value and growth portfolio for its variable annuity product.
Atlas Advisers
OAKLAND, Calif. - Atlas Advisers an affiliate of World Savings and Loan, has named Oppenheimer Management to subadvise a new global growth portfolio for its Atlas Assets family of mutual funds as well as a new strategic income fund.
The funds are still in registration with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Blue Cross/Blue Shield
CHICAGO - The $1.1 billion defined benefit plan of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association will invest a total of $25 million in Frank Russell Trust's Emerging Markets Fund, a manager-of-managers commingled fund.
Funding will come from reductions in core EAFE allocations, said Ron Schmitz, director of benefit finance.
Callan assisted.
Brown & Sharpe
NORTH KINGSTON, R.I. - Brown & Sharpe Manufacturing Co. hired Putnam Investments to provide bundled services for its $30 million 401(k) plan.
Assets will be converted May 1 to the new plan, which will offer five diversified, Putnam-managed investment options, as well as company stock. Putnam will administer the company's employee stock ownership plan.
Putnam also will provide daily valued record keeping, administration, trust and employee communication and investment education.
The company previously used an unbundled approach with trust services from Fleet Bank, monthly valued record keeping from NYL Benefits, and three investment options from various managers, in addition to company stock.
Carnegie-Mellon University
PITTSBURGH - The endowment of Carnegie-Mellon University hired Julius Baer Investment Management for an international bond portfolio of undisclosed size.
According to the 1996 edition of the Money Market Directory of Pension Funds and Their Investment Advisers, Carnegie-Mellon has about a $405 million endowment.
Central Newspapers
INDIANAPOLIS - The $207 million pension fund for Central Newspapers Inc. reduced the equity assets it managed internally and hired two outside managers.
Bank of New York will manage $25 million in an S&P 500 index portfolio. Sector Capital Management will run $20 million in core equity.
Cova Life Insurance
OAKBROOK TERRACE, Ill. - Cova Life Insurance Co. added two advisers for five new portfolios of its variable annuity, Van Kampen Merritt Series Trust.
J.P. Morgan will run a quality bond portfolio, small- and large-cap stock portfolios, select equity portfolio and international equity portfolio.
Lord, Abbett will run a bond portfolio cloned after its Bond Debenture mutual fund.
Diversified Investment
PURCHASE, N.Y. - Diversified Investment Advisors selected McKinley Capital Management to subadvise a new aggressive equity portfolio for a manager of managers mutual fund that is marketed to 401(k), 401(b) and 457 plans, as well as Keoghs and IRAs.
This is McKinley's first mutual fund assignment.
Hillsdale College
HILLSDALE, Mich. - The endowment of Hillsdale College hired Julius Baer Investment Management as its first international bond manager.
A spokeswoman wouldn't give the size of the portfolio or the size of the endowment. According to Nelson's Directory of Plan Sponsors, the college has an $85.1 million endowment.
Inland Steel
CHICAGO - Making its first move in the area, the $1.95 billion Inland Steel Industries Inc. pension fund hired Schroder Capital Management International to invest in emerging market equities, said Terence R. Rogers, director-pensions and risk management.
The fund assigned $35 million to Schroder.
The fund now has a total of 15% in international investments, all equities.
Funding will come from reallocating among domestic and international managers.
The fund conducted the search without a consultant.
Ipsilon Networks
PALO ALTO, Calif. - Ipsilon Networks Inc. hired Putnam Investments to provide bundled services for its start-up 401(k) plan.
Six Putnam managed investments are offered in a daily valued program, which includes employee communication and investment education, an automated voice-response system, trust and administrative services.
Ipsilon has 30 eligible employees.
Kinnett Dairies
COLUMBUS, Ga. - Kinnett Dairies Inc. hired NYL Benefit Services to provide fully bundled services for its $3.7 million 401(k) plan.
Seven options, including funds from Twentieth Century and Fidelity Investments as well as stable value funds from New York Life Insurance, are offered.
NYL provides daily valued record keeping, trust and administration, and employee communications and education.
Cory Loomis, Kinnett director of human resources, said NYL was the most attractive of the four finalists because it does not charge wrap fees for the use of funds managed by external managers.
Other finalists were Principal Financial, Massachusetts Mutual and the incumbent, Lincoln National.
The plan was unbundled, using record keeping services from Benetech.
Los Angeles City
LOS ANGELES - The board for the $5 billion Los Angeles City Employees' Retirement System has asked its staff to begin negotiations for a $100 million UK/Europe equity mandate with Capital Guardian. The contract would be for three years.
If negotiations are successful, funding would come from Baillie Gifford Overseas.
Manhattan & Bronx
NEW YORK - After a full search, the $300 Manhattan & Bronx Surface Transit Operating Authority Pension Plan decided to retain incumbent Callan Associates as its consultant.
Anthony M. Patten, deputy director-pension services, said the decision is tentative, pending approval of the board.
Metro Information
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. - The $16 million defined contribution plan for Metro Information Services Inc. hired Twentieth Century Services for bundled services, said Steve Lurus, director of finance.
Eight Twentieth Century mutual funds and the Benham Income and Growth fund will be offered as options.
Twentieth Century replaces Principal Financial Group.
Metro wanted to provide employees with mutual funds they could track more easily, and the company wanted to be affiliated with a pension fund adviser, rather than an insurance company, according to Mr. Lurus.
Minnesota State Board
ST. PAUL, Minn. - The $22 billion Minnesota State Board of Investment committed $50 million to the Zell/Merrill Lynch Real Estate Opportunity Partners IV fund and $20 million to the Equitable Real Estate Hyperion High Yield Commercial Mortgage Fund, according to board meeting minutes.
The board also hired money managers to execute investment strategies for bonds, emerging markets and alternative investments.
BlackRock Financial Management was hired to manage a semi-passive bond portfolio, said Howard Bicker, executive director.
The amount has not been determined, but it will be in the range of $1 billion, according to Mr. Bicker.
The money will come from Fidelity Management Trust Co., which resigned Jan. 1 because the SBI would not agree to a fee increase, according to the minutes of the December board meeting. Telephone calls to Fidelity were not returned.
The board also hired Montgomery Securities, Genesis Emerging Markets and City of London to each manage an emerging markets equity portfolio, Mr. Bicker said.
It has not been determined how much each manager will receive, but the fund has an allocation of 2% of total assets to emerging market equities, said Mr. Bicker.
The source of the money to fund the commitment has not been determined, he said.
Earlier, the board committed $40 million to the First Reserve Fund VII and $25 million to the Banc Fund IV, said Mr. Bicker. First Reserve will invested in energy companies; the Banc Fund will invest in small banks that are expected to be bought by larger ones, said Mr. Bicker. The commitments will be funded from cash.
Pennsylvania State
HARRISBURG, Pa. - Trustees of the $16 billion Pennsylvania State Employes' Retirement System allocated $130 million to three managers.
Trustees are investing $50 million in the Whitehall Real Estate Fund VII and VIII L.P.; $40 million in Golder, Thoma, Cressey & Rauner Fund V L.P.; and $40 million in the Madison Dearborn Capital Partners II L.P.
Golder Thoma will invest in companies with consolidation potential in fragmented industries; Madison Dearborn, an existing manager for the system, will invest in buy-outs and specialty equity transactions.
Assets of the commitments will come from new contributions.
Plumbers and Pipefitters
CROFTON, Md. The approximately $2 billion Plumbers and Pipefitters National Pension Fund hired Columbia Partners Investment Management to run a $300 million balanced portfolio that had been managed by ASB Capital Management, said Bob Nicholson, administrator.
Mr. Nicholson declined to say how much the pension fund still has under management with ASB. Columbia Partners was formed last fall by executives at ASB and Riggs Investment Management Corp.Service Corp. International
HOUSTON - Service Corp. International hired River Oaks Trust as trustee to oversee the termination of pension plans for companies it acquires, said Mary Beth Russo, director of corporate investment.
As Service Corp. acquires companies, it terminates the company's pension plan and moves employees into its own plan, Ms. Russo said. Getting government approval to do that can take up to two years, she said.
For that transition period, Service Corp. executives decided it would be easier to have a single trustee for the plans in process, she said.
Service Corp. expects River Oaks to act as trustee for assets of about $30 million from 15 to 25 different plans under the arrangement. River Oaks will also manage about $15 million in short-term assets over time, she said.
The changes do not affect Service Corp.'s existing $56 million plan, she said.
Sola Optical
PETALUMA, Calif. - The $18 million defined contribution plan for Sola Optical USA selected Twentieth Century Services to provide bundled services, said Arlene Heinzmann, qualified plan administrator. The company decided to switch to Twentieth Century because it wanted daily valuation and telephone support.
In addition to two Twentieth Century funds, the investors can also select Benham Income and Growth, First Stable Value and BZW Barclays Global Investors funds.
Record keeping and communication was performed by Watson Wyatt Worldwide.
Participants had mutual fund choices in balanced, growth and growth and income funds, said Ms. Heinzmann.
Sterling Heights Police and Fire
STERLING HEIGHTS, Mich. - The $125 million Sterling Heights Police and Fire Retirement System Act 345 hired Comerica as its new master custodian.
The hiring was the result of a regular five-year review of master custodial services.
Michigan National Bank was terminated because of some service problems, according to Michael Glick, secretary.
A spokeswoman for Michigan National said they understood cost was a consideration in the appointment of Comerica, which is owned by the same holding company as the fund's manager, Munder Capital Management. She explained Michigan National also offers lower custody fees for its investment management clients.
Mr. Glick also said the system will be conducting an asset allocation study and look specifically at its real estate portfolio. The allocation is less than 0.5% of fund assets but includes several limited partnerships that have not performed well, Mr. Glick said.
Fund trustees will be looking at other investment vehicles. Under the basket clause the system is allowed to invest up to 5% in real estate.
The system also will be reviewing securities lending and commission recapture.
St. Louis County
CLAYTON. Mo. - Board members overseeing $192 million of pension assets for St. Louis County selected Morgan Grenfell for a $30 million fixed-income assignment, and may change the fund's asset allocation, said Ralph Bowser, retirement plans administrator.
Contracts haven't been signed yet, but Morgan Grenfell was chosen to take over half of the fund's 40% allocation to fixed income, Mr. Bowser said.
Incumbent Boatmen's Bank will continue to manage the other half, he said.
As for the asset allocation, at issue is whether to change the fund's 60%/40% equity/fixed income allocation, he said; board members will discuss the issue later this month.
Board members also may consider getting out of the fund's 2% to 3% allocation to real estate, he said.
Adding a small-cap mandate also is something the board has considered, but nothing has been decided, any changes would be far down the road, he said.
St. Louis Employees
ST. LOUIS - Trustees of the $350 million St. Louis Employees' Retirement System offered a contract to Watson Wyatt Worldwide for investment consulting services, said William Duffe, board secretary.
The contract could be ratified by trustees soon, if Watson Wyatt agrees to the terms, according to Mr. Duffe.
Watson Wyatt would replace Washington Hackett Poitevien & Co., which the board terminated in December.
Wood Logan Associates
OLD GREENWICH, Conn. - Wood Logan Associates hired Founders Asset Management and Fred Alger Management to manage three new portfolios for the Venture annuities and North American Funds mutual funds. Wood Logan is the marketing and distribution company for both products, which are administered by subsidiaries of Manulife Financial.
Fred Alger will manage a small- to midcap portfolio for the North American Funds, administered by NASL Financial Services.
Founders will manage an international small-cap portfolio and a growth equity portfolio, which will be available as part of the North American Funds and in the Venture and Venture Vision annuities administered by North American Security Life Insurance and First North American Life Assurance.
