Ohio State University, Columbus, is close to hiring a consultant to do an asset allocation review of its $700 million endowment fund. A consultant is to be named within a couple of weeks. Officials have completed the interview process, but Treasurer James Nichols would not name finalists. The asset review should be completed by late summer; any searches would be done in-house.
The Civic Employees Superannuation and Benefit Plan and the Police Superannuation and Benefit Plan, Regina, Saskatchewan, are completing a search for an asset consultant, the first step toward an asset allocation and liability study, said Gary Tramer, general manager-pensions and benefits.
The anticipated study, which the funds hope to complete by September, could result in investment management changes and diverging investment approaches of the C$400 million (U.S. $288 million) civic plan and the C$150 million (U.S. $108 million) police plan, which now are invested similarly. The plans, which don't use a consultant, hope to make a decision on the search by the end of the month.
Pennsylvania Public School Employes' Retirement Board, Harrisburg, terminated Columbus Circle Investors as a U.S. growth equity manager, confirmed John Lane, chief investment officer of the $25 billion fund. Performance was the cause for the termination, Mr. Lane acknowledged. Columbus Circle managed $560 million when the relationship was severed. A Columbus Circle official said CIO Irwin Smith had no comment.
In addition, the fund committed $75 million to the TPG Partners II L.P., a private equity buy-out fund. The trustees also deferred funding a $100 million allocation to Investment Advisers Inc. because the firm lost a portfolio manager. An IAI spokeswoman declined to comment. The board will revisit the issue later; the money will remain in cash.
Texas Instruments, Dallas, may lose about one-third of its pension assets if a deal to sell its defense business to Raytheon Co. is approved, said Joe Anderson, manager of employee benefit fund investments. The chunk of Texas Instruments' $2.65 billion in assets would be moved to Raytheon's plan following Department of Justice approval of the sale, which could happen within a few months.
Texas Instruments has $1.9 billion in its 401(k) and profit-sharing plans and $750 million in its defined benefit plan. Raytheon has $5.7 billion in pension assets, according to Nelson's Directory of Plan Sponsors.
Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corp., Poughkeepsie, N.Y., reduced by 10 percentage points its U.S. large-cap equity allocation for its $280 million pension fund, based on a J.P. Morgan Investment Management asset allocation model, said Steven V. Lent, treasurer and assistant secretary.
It cut the large U.S. stocks to 40%, or $112 million, from 50%, or $140 million, of total assets. The proceeds were reallocated to bonds, which go to 37% of assets from 27%.
J.P. Morgan, the fund's sole manager, has allocation discretion.
Fidelity Investments acquired McQuade Inc., a small actuarial consulting firm, allowing Fidelity for the first time to offer retirement plan and benefits outsourcing consulting services. The services will be integrated into a new business unit formed by Fidelity within its Institutional Retirement Group.
Phoenix Duff & Phelps launched a REIT institutional mutual fund for small to midsized pension plans. Barbara Rubin and Michael Schatt are co-managers of the Phoenix Real Estate Equity Securities Portfolio, which uses a ``growth at a reasonable price'' strategy. The minimum investment is $250,000. The fund has $5 million from an unnamed pension plan and $5 million in seed money from Phoenix Home Life.
