Swampscott (Mass.) Contributory Retirement System is searching for an active domestic small-cap core equity manager to run approximately $2 million for the $27 million system. The search was prompted by performance concerns at incumbent Gabelli Investments, said Richard DiPesa, retirement administrator. RFPs are available from Rosemary Guillette at [email protected] Proposals are due Aug. 30, and plan officials hope to hire a new manager by November. Segal Advisors is assisting. Joseph Rindler, chairman of Gabelli Asset Management, did not return a call requesting comment.
Illinois State Board of Investment, Chicago, will search for an S&P 500 index manager to run $1.6 billion and a Lehman intermediate government/credit index fund manager to run $300 million, said William Atwood, executive director. Northern Trust Global Investments, which runs the two portfolios for the $10.1 billion board, can rebid. RFPs for the S&P 500 search should be issued within a week; interested managers may contact consultant Marquette Associates. Marquette also will screen managers for the Lehman index portfolio, but managers who want to be included in the search can contact Marquette. Proposals for both portfolios will be accepted until early September.
Methuen (Mass.) Contributory Retirement System is searching for a private equity fund of funds and a high-yield manager to run $3 million each, confirmed Terrylee Murphy, administrator of the $67 million system. Proposals are due Sept. 3 and can be e-mailed to Sylvia Hidalgo at Segal Advisors, [email protected] The searches were the result of an asset allocation study by Segal Advisors.
Wisconsin State Investment Board, Madison, is searching for firms to provide proxy-voting and other corporate-governance consulting services for the $70 billion fund. The board could hire different consultants for the different service segments, which include providing proxy analysis and voting, corporate-governance ratings and research, recommending changes to its proxy-voting guidelines, identifying issues and screening holdings for potential focus-list placement, and assisting in posting its proxy votes on the board's website. Institutional Shareholder Services, which now provides the services, can rebid, said TerriJo Saarela, investor responsibility program manager. Board officials issued the RFP because there are now more firms providing such services than there were when ISS was hired several years ago. Because board officials are willing to unbundle the services, smaller firms will also have a chance to compete, she said. The RFP is available at www.swib.state.wi.us. Proposals are due Sept. 27, and board officials could make a decision as early as November.
California Public Employees' Retirement System, Sacramento, will issue an RFP on Oct. 25 for a real estate consultant, said Brad Pacheco, spokesman. The $166 billion system's current consultant, PCA, can rebid. Proposals are due Dec. 3; finalist interviews are scheduled for April 18.
Illinois Teachers' Retirement System, Springfield, will search for active domestic small-cap growth and value equity managers to run a combined $800 million and an active domestic large-cap growth equity manager to handle $458 million. The $31 billion system has not determined how many small-cap managers will be hired or how much each will run, said John Day, spokesman. Partial funding for the small-cap portfolio will come from the performance-based termination of NorthPointe Capital, which managed $415 million in active domestic small-cap to midcap value equities. Michael Hayden, NorthPointe managing director, did not return a call by press time seeking comment. Further funding details could not be learned by press time. Funding for the large-cap search comes from terminating Geewax Terker, which ran an active domestic all-cap growth equity strategy. The system decided to move to a more specific large-cap approach, Mr. Day said. Gordon Dickinson, the plan's consultant at Callan Associates, is conducting both searches, which were authorized at the system's Aug. 10 board meeting.
California Public Employees' Retirement System's investment committee approved starting its second manager development program and will issue an RFP to create a "spring-fed pool" of new strategic advisers, said Brad Pacheco, spokesman for the $161 billion Sacramento-based system. CalPERS has an existing $2.5 billion manager development program with strategic advisers Progress Putnam Lovell and Strategic Investment Management; it provides venture capital and investment funds to emerging managers in exchange for a minority equity stake in the firms. The new program will give the CalPERS board final say on the selection of hedge funds of funds for the program. Officials have not scheduled a timeframe for issuing the RFP, he said. Wilshire Associates assisted.
