J.S. Alberici Corp.
ST. LOUIS - J.S. Alberici Corp. hired Vanguard to provide bundled services for its $35 million hybrid profit-sharing/401(k) plan. Eight diversified investment options managed by Vanguard are offered. Vanguard also provides daily valued record keeping, administration, trust services and employee education and communication.
Boatmen's Trust Co. previously provided bundled services to the plan, including management of six investment options, said Herman Woodcock, the plan's administrator.
City of Alexandria
ALEXANDRIA, Va. - The City of Alexandria Supplemental Retirement Fund chose CIGNA Investments as investment manager and administrator for the $30 million plan. The investment portfolio has yet to be developed, said Dan Neckel, director of finance.
The Principal Group, the manager and administrator for the last five years, was included in the in-house search.
All-Phase Electric Supply
BENTON HARBOR, - Mich. -All-Phase Electric Supply changed two growth equity mutual fund options for its $37 million defined contribution plan.
The plan added the T. Rowe Price Blue Chip Stock Fund and the Franklin Small-Cap Growth Fund, replacing the Fidelity Magellan Fund and the American Century Ultra Fund.
The investment committee dropped the two because officials saw the funds operating more like index funds than growth funds because of their large size, said Denise Nelligan, employee benefits manager.
Northern Trust assisted.
AlliedSignal Inc.
MORRISTOWN, N.J. - AlliedSignal Inc., Morristown, N.J., added two new funds and three lifestyle portfolio options provided by State Street Bank & Trust to its $3.5 billion savings plan.
The addition of the International Stock Fund, Small-Cap Stock Fund, and the three lifestyle portfolios that provide conservative, moderate and aggressive investment strategies, brings the plan's total options to 11 from a variety of providers. The company chose the options based on feedback from employees, said Tom Sanford, a company spokesman.
Amarillo Firemen
AMARILLO, Texas - The $60 million Amarillo Firemen's Relief & Retirement Fund hired Bank One as custodian to replace Boatmen's Trust.
The in-house search focused on fees after most custodians seemed to be equal during the RFP process, said Dean Frigo, finance director for the city.
Colorado Public Employees
DENVER - The Colorado Public Employees' Retirement Association added two investment options to its $204 million 401(k) plan, expanding its investment offerings to seven. The Capital Guardian Europacific Growth Fund, an international equity option, and the Northern Trust money market fund are the latest additions to the plan.
ConAgra Inc.
OMAHA, Neb. - ConAgra Inc. hired Vanguard to provide an international active growth equities fund for its $1 billion 401(k) plan, said Douglas Fehr, manager-short-term funding.
The additional fund will bring to seven the number of investment choices for employees in the plan, which uses several managers.
No consultant was used.
Denver Water Commissioners
DENVER - The Denver Board of Water Commissioners hired DeMarche Associates as a consultant on a project basis to complete an asset liability/allocation study for its $150 million pension fund.
The fund is still in contract negotiations with the firm, but expects to start the study shortly with results by the November board meeting, said Kathryn Corry, manager of treasury operations. The fund wanted to take a good look at cash flows and determine if changes need to be made in asset allocation, she said.
Elevator Constructors
NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa. - The International Union of Elevator Constructors selected Barnett Capital Advisors to manage a $50 million small-cap growth equity portfolio for its $3 billion pension fund, confirmed an official for the pension fund. Further information was unavailable.
SEI Capital Resources assisted.
Houston Police
HOUSTON - The $1.51 billion Houston Police Retirement System hired Abbott Capital Management as special consultant to design an alternative investment class program.
Abbott will prepare an investment approach, including suggested investment classes and procedures for implementing alternative investments. John Lawson, executive director, said the fund has a target range of up to 10%for alternative investments. The program is expected to be presented to the board by the end of the year, he said.
Illinois State Board
CHICAGO - The Illinois State Board of Investment hired The Townsend Group as a real estate consultant on a project basis to assist the fund, said Kathy Lindsay, deputy director of the $6.3 billion fund. Townsend has worked with the fund before in providing quarterly analysis.
Iron Workers, New England
DORCHESTER, Mass. - The Iron Workers District Council, New England, hired Loomis Sayles to manage a bond portfolio and Freedom Capital Management, a large-cap growth equity portfolio, for its $175 million pension fund, said Hugh Shaw, director-investments.
The assignment amounts weren't available.
Funding will come from cash and from dropping Westfield Capital Management, a small-cap equities manager.
Northern Indiana Public Service
HAMMOND, Ind. - Northern Indiana Public Service Co. hired Provident Investment Counsel for its $870 million pension fund, said Gary Pottorff, manager-financial operations. Provident will be assigned $39 million to run in small-cap growth equities. Funding is from Investment Advisers Inc., also a small-cap manager, which was dropped.
LCG assisted in the search.
Pennsylvania Public School
HARRISBURG, Pa. - The $39 billion Pennsylvania Public School Employes' Retirement System hired Aberdeen America, Roll & Ross Asset Management and Bay Isle Financial to each manage $15 million.
Aberdeen will manage a core equity portfolio; the other two firms will run value equity portfolios. The firms will be part of the system's developmental portfolio, which is run by emerging or minority managers and is about 1%of the fund. The funding will come cash. The search was conducted in-house.
Pennsylvania State Employes'
HARRISBURG, Pa. - The Pennsylvania State Employes' Retirement System allocated up to $25 million to Healthcare Ventures V, a private equity fund that will invest in emerging health care trends, confirmed a retirement system spokesman.
The allocation will be funded from cash, said the spokesman for the $19 billion system.
Cambridge Associates assisted.
Phoenix Home Life
HARTFORD, Conn. - Phoenix Home Life Mutual Insurance Co. added the JPM Research Enhanced Index Series, managed by J.P. Morgan to its series of variable annuity and life insurance programs.
The JPM fund seeks to beat returns of the S&P 500 Index through bottom-up stock picking, investing in the most undervalued stock in each industry sector and by avoiding relatively overvalued stocks.
PLAN International
WARWICK, R.I. - PLAN International hired Argus Consulting as its first consultant to do asset performance analysis and a fiduciary compliance review for the $2.5 million offshore defined contribution plan and $1 million 403(b) plan.
Argus also will be reviewing alternative providers for the offshore defined contribution plan, which now uses AIG, if the board decides to add more options, said Janet Fayle, corporate secretary for PLAN. The board meets again in November.
Professional Engineers
ALEXANDRIA, Va. - The National Society of Professional Engineers, Alexandria, hired American Century Investments as bundled service provider for its $3 million 401(k) plan.
American Century will provide record keeping, communications and 12 investment diversified investment selections. The plan also will offer a self-directed brokerage option.
A spokeswoman said the fund previously had seven investment options but declined to identify the service provider.
Republic Industries
FORT LAUDERDALE. Fla. - Republic Industries added the AIM Value Fund and MFS Emerging Growth Fund to its $5.4 million defined contribution plan.
With the new funds, the plan has seven offerings. Merrill Lynch manages four options, in addition to a company stock fund, said Debbie Bayer, head of qualified plans.
Teamsters Local 688
ST. LOUIS - The Teamsters Negotiated Pension Plan, Local 688 restructured the external management of its $160 million pension plan, said Richard Diffley, union trustee. Hired were: Boston Co. for $21 million in large-cap value equity; Montag & Caldwell for $21 million in large-cap growth; and ARM Capital Advisors for $20 million in core bonds.
Changes were funded by reducing Boatmen's Capital's assignment to $28 million in dedicated bonds, and $14 million in active duration bonds.
Trade Street, the NationsBank unit that took over Boatmen's equity portfolios, was terminated; it ran a $15 million equity portfolio for the fund. Mississippi Valley Advisors, which ran $15 million in bonds for the fund, also was terminated. The termination of MVA was not related to performance, Mr. Diffley said. Nicholas-Applegate and Investment Advisers Inc. were retained as small- and midcap managers, respectively. Asset Strategy Consulting assisted.
Union Electric Co.
ST. LOUIS - Union Electric Co.'s $925 million pension plan, St. Louis, hired Polaris Capital Management to manage $40 million in a TAA portfolio. Polaris will use quantitative modeling, with a target benchmark of 45%equity, 45%bonds and 10%cash.
Vassar College
POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. - Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, hired Bee & Associates to manage $18 million in global small-cap stocks for its $457 million endowment fund. Funding will come from a reduction in the allocation to Grantham, Mayo, Van Otterloo, which manages $97 million in global equities for Vassar. Cambridge Associates assisted.
West Virginia University
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. - The West Virginia University Foundation Inc. hired Endowment Advisors for its $200 million endowment fund's first move to alternative investments, said R. Craig Walker, vice president-finance and administration and treasurer.
It committed $4 million each to venture capital and domestic private equity and international private equity funds offered by the manager. Funding will come from cash flow and a reallocation. Morgan Keegan assisted.
