GARDEN CITY, N.Y. - RTZ America Inc. created a single defined benefit plan with $468 million in assets by combining three separate plans.
As a result, four money managers were hired, 13 were terminated and seven incumbents were retained, as was the custodian of RTZ subsidiary U.S. Borax Inc., said Glenn Swartz.
In addition, U.S. Borax hired Putnam Investments, Boston, to manage two defined contribution plans with $58 million in assets.
Mr. Swartz, consultant to RTZ and U.S. Borax, Valencia, Calif., retired as director of U.S. Borax's pension fund late last year.
The consolidated defined benefit assets came from three sister companies, including U.S. Borax, owned by RTZ America, which is in turn a unit of The RTZ Corp. PLC, London.
U.S. Borax's portion was $231 million, while Kennecott Corp., Salt Lake City, had $215 million and Luzenac America Inc., Englewood, Colo., had $7 million, Mr. Swartz said. Since then, the fund has grown because of market appreciation.
Hired for the defined benefit plan were:
Ark Asset Management Co. Inc., New York, for $60 million in large-capitalization value equities;
Montag & Caldwell Inc., Atlanta, for $60 million in large-cap growth;
Brandes Investment Partners Inc., San Diego, Calif., for $30 million in international equities; and
Miller Anderson & Sherrerd, West Conshohocken, Pa., for $45 million in global fixed income.
A search for a $40 million midcap assignment is nearly complete; a decision is expected before the end of the month, Mr. Swartz said.
Incumbents that were retained are:
Morgan Stanley Asset Management Inc., New York, for $30 million in international equities;
Capital International Research and Management, Los Angeles, $20 million in emerging markets;
TCW Realty Advisors, Los Angeles, and J.P. Morgan Investment Management, New York, a $20 million real estate allocation they will divide;
Numeric Investors L.P., Cambridge, Mass., for $30 million in small-cap equities;
Collins Associates, Newport Beach, Calif., for $30 million divided between a distressed securities multimanager fund and a multimanager fund with long-short portfolios; and
Prudential Asset Management Group, Newark, N.J., for a $100 million dedicated fixed-income annuity.
Mr. Swartz decline to name the terminated firms.
Borax's custodian, The Northern Trust Co., Chicago, was chosen for custody over State Street Bank & Trust Co., Boston, and Bank of New York.
Mercer Investment Consulting Inc., Deerfield, Ill., assisted with the searches.
At U.S. Borax, Putnam was hired as bundled service provider for two defined contribution plans, a $51 million salaried workers plan and a $7 million hourly workers plan. Both will have the same 10 investment options, eight of which will be managed by Putnam.
Previously, the hourly workers fund had three options, and the salaried workers fund had four, he said.
INVESCO Capital Management ran the hourly plan with a bundled approach, while various outside managers were used for the salaried plan, with record keeping done in-house.
The Putnam options are: a stable value fund, three Putnam Lifestage asset allocation funds, Putnam New Opportunities Fund, Putnam Voyager Fund, Putnam Investors Fund and Putnam Fund for Growth and Income.
The other two options are the Morgan Stanley Institutional Fund Inc. International Equity Portfolio, an existing choice, and an RTZ company stock option, Mr. Swartz said.
The other finalists for the defined contribution search, which was conducted in-house, were Twentieth Century Cos. Inc., Kansas City, Mo., and T. Rowe Price Associates Inc., Baltimore, Mr. Swartz said.
