Products January 5, 2012

Spark and The Spark Institute Reorganized into One Association

SPARK and The SPARK Institute were purchased from Robert Wuelfing and reorganized as a single non-profit, member-driven association.
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Ten companies are funding the reorganization, and include: Ascensus, BlackRock, DST Retirement Solutions, Great-West Retirement Services, The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America, J.P. Morgan Asset Management, Lincoln Financial Group, Prudential Retirement, SunGard and Wells Fargo & Company. The resulting entity will operate as The SPARK Institute.

“This reorganization is an important step in the evolution of The SPARK Institute,” said Jude Metcalfe, president of DST Retirement Solutions, and president of the new organization. “It provides the Institute with the structure and resources necessary to support a broader and more active public policy agenda, provide greater flexibility to increase partnerships with other non-profit advocacy and industry organizations, and assure the permanency of the association,” he said. 

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Wuelfing, who will continue to serve as executive director of the organization, said, “Our basic mission remains the same as it has been for the last decade—to be the leading voice in Washington for the retirement services industry. In fact, the reorganization was motivated largely by the recognition that we are at a critical time in the evolution of the employer-based retirement system and there was a need for more resources to take The SPARK Institute to the next level as an advocacy organization.”

Metcalfe added, “We are now able to broaden our support of employer-sponsored retirement plans, continuing to develop strong positions and data that portray the value of the current system and the industry that makes it possible.” 

Wuelfing also noted the reorganization will not change the benefits for former SPARK and SPARK Institute members and that Larry Goldbrum, general counsel, and other staff will continue in their positions.

 

Products January 5, 2012

Granite Investment Advisors Launches Actively Managed Equity Value Fund

 Granite Investment Advisors introduced The Granite Value Fund, an actively managed equity value fund.
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The Granite Value Fund invests primarily in mid- to large-capitalization equity securities of U.S. and foreign companies. The Fund seeks to provide long-term capital appreciation by investing in equity securities of approximately 40 companies that the adviser thinks are undervalued.

In selecting portfolio securities for the Fund, Granite will look for companies that have a unique competitive advantage; whose business models are simple and can be understood; have management teams the adviser thinks are trustworthy; have low debt and are not dependent upon borrowed money to conduct daily operations; and have the ability to generate significant free cash flow over a market cycle.

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“Over the years we have had many prospective clients whose investment assets were not sizeable enough to be managed effectively in our separate account strategies,” said Scott Schermerhorn, chief investment officer of Granite Investment Advisors and the senior portfolio manager for the Fund. “The Granite Value Fund will be concentrated in those companies that we know extremely well and that exhibit high or improving returns on capital.”

 Tim Lesko, a principal of the firm and senior member of the investment team, will also manage the Fund.

Investors can purchase the Fund directly or through brokerage platforms. The minimum initial investment for taxable accounts is $10,000 and $5,000 for non-taxable accounts. 

 

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