CHARLESTON, W.Va. - The $5.5 billion West Virginia Investment Management Board expects to issue RFPs soon for a consultant to help the fund develop a comprehensive investment program, now that it is allowed to invest in equities, said Craig Slaughter, executive director.
The board hopes to hire the consultant by year end to develop asset allocation, investment polices and investment manager recommendations.
A state constitutional amendment was adopted last month, enabling the board to invest up to 20% in equities within the first year after its passage, 40% the second and 60% thereafter.
Pepperdine University
MALIBU, Calif. - Pepperdine University's $215 million endowment is searching for alternative investment managers, said Clariza Mullins, associate treasurer.
The endowment is looking for managers for absolute return strategies, private equities and inflation hedge strategies.
Ms. Mullins said it might take a year to find suitable managers.
The search is a result of a reallocation raising alternative investments to 30% from 20% of the total fund and reducing domestic equities to 30% from 40%. Its five domestic equity managers were retained.
The endowment also hired Analytic TSA Global to manage temporarily the $20 million taken from the domestic equity managers. It equitized the cash. Cambridge Associates is assisting.
Cambridge Retirement
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - The $325 million Cambridge Retirement System has set a Nov. 14 deadline for RFPs for a high-yield, fixed-income manager. The new firm will run $13 million, said Alison Ellsworth, the Segal consultant who is assisting.
"We took a look at their current portfolio, they have no exposure to this, and they should," Ms. Ellsworth said.
The fund hopes to hire a manager by the end of March..
Chicago teachers fund
The $8 billion Public School Teachers' Pension & Retirement Fund of Chicago is conducting an emerging manager search for domestic stock and bond managers.
The fund will be considering minority- or female-owned firms that manage between $10 million and $400 million.
Firms owned by disabled persons also will be included. The fund completed a similar search five years ago.
The portfolio size has yet to be determined, as does the number of managers that will be hired. The fund has $60 million set aside for new emerging minority managers.
The fund has five minority- and women-owned managers, which manage about $370 million.
RFPs are due Nov. 21. Mercer's Chicago office will be handling responses.
Fulton County Employees
ATLANTA - The $700 million Fulton County Employees' Retirement System is searching for an emerging domestic fixed-income manager to manage an undetermined amount of money.
RFIs are due back to consultant Watson Wyatt Nov. 28. The search should be completed by early February, a source said.
The fund will only consider firms that have been in business for two years and have a minimum of $50 million in total assets under management.
California Employees'
SACRAMENTO, Calif. - The $124 billion California Public Employees' Retirement System has sent out about 200 RFP forms in its search for managers to manage the fund's $1.4 billion office property portfolio.
The final date for RFP responses is Dec. 3.
Finalist recommendations are expected in mid-January. No date has been set for selection.
Washtenaw County Retirement
ANN ARBOR, Mich. - The $168 million Washtenaw County Retirement System is searching for a small-cap growth equity manager.
Funding will come from the termination earlier this year of Sirach Capital, which managed $25 million in equities, said Monica Lawrence, retirement administrator. About $5 million to $6 million of Sirach's portfolio will go to the new manager. The remainder has been divided between existing managers.
A new firm is expected to be chosen around year end. SEI Capital Resources is assisting.
New Orleans firefighters fund
NEW ORLEANS - The $170 million Firefighters Pension and Relief Fund for the City of New Orleans will start a search for hedge fund managers in November, said Richard Hampton, fund administrator.
The fund will allocate 5% to 10% of total assets to the new asset class. Mr. Hampton expects the board to hire two managers by Jan. 1. Funding probably will come from U.S. large-cap stock managers.
Smith Barney is assisting.
Electric Power Board
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The $16 million Electric Power Board of Nashville is expected to send out RFPs this week for a vendor for its 457 plan.
Aetna now handles the entire plan, Donald Kohansky, senior vice president and chief financial officer, said Aetna will be considered, but the board is looking for a better deal and is not interested in offering annuities, as Aetna does.
The search is expected to be finished in mid-December.
Tucson Supplemental
TUCSON, Ariz. - The $380 million Tucson Supplemental Retirement System will search for a U.S. bond manager and a small-cap equity manager, maybe as early as January, said Mike Parisi, treasury administrator.
The decision to do searches follows a recent allocation study done by Hewitt Associates.
The entire $95 million bond portfolio is now managed internally.
The board might decide to allocate between $25 million and $30 million to an outside manager.
The size and investment style of the small-cap portfolio have yet to be decided and will be discussed, along with the bond manager search criteria, at the board's Jan. 22 meeting.
