Products November 20, 2008

T. Rowe Unveils Global Equity Offerings

T. Rowe Price launched the Global Large-Cap and Global Real Estate strategies with offerings tailored for institutional and retail investors as well as shares available through advisers.
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A news release said the Global Large-Cap and Global Real Estate strategies will use fundamental analysis and a bottom-up approach to selecting stocks. Analysts in Europe, Asia, and the Americas will contribute their ideas and stock picks to the portfolios.

“Global investments are becoming an increasingly important component of investors’ portfolios,” said Bill Stromberg, director of Global Equities, in the release. “We’re positioning our investment offerings for the long term. We have been strategically expanding our global research capabilities and now have more than one-third of our equity research team based outside the United States. A robust lineup of global investment strategies offers clients durable diversification value.”

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According to the firm, the Global Large-Cap strategy seeks long-term growth of capital by investing almost all of its assets in stocks of larger companies in at least five countries, including the United States. At least 40% of its net assets will be in companies outside the U.S. The strategy will take a growth-oriented approach to selecting stocks. Scott Berg, who has six years of experience with T. Rowe Price, will manage the Global Large-Cap strategy.

The Global Real Estate strategy seeks long-term growth through capital appreciation and current income by investing at least 80% of its net assets in equity securities of real estate companies throughout the world. It can also invest in companies related to the real estate industry.

The strategy will not directly own real estate and has no restrictions on the size of companies in which it can invest. Normally, it will invest at least 40% of its net assets in real estate companies outside the United States.

A significant portion of the strategy’s U.S. investments will be in real estate investment trusts (REITs), particularly equity REITs. Other investments in the U.S. and a significant portion of investments outside the U.S. may include real estate operating companies (REOCs), T. Rowe Price said.

The Global Real Estate strategy will be managed by David Lee.

Data & Research November 20, 2008

Financial Professionals Most Trusted Source, Survey Says

People in a recent poll turn first to Web sites and news sources and then to financial professionals for financial information.
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When seeking out news, almost half of those polled go to news and financial Web sites (48%), followed by newspapers (45%), financial professionals (35%), and magazines (15%). However, the sources most used are not those most trusted. When it comes to trust, financial professionals are voted the highest by 61%, beating out Web sites (51%) and news Web sites (41%).

“The fact that people are using the tools at their disposal to educate themselves is very encouraging,’ said Barbara Goodstein, executive vice president and chief innovation officer for AXA Equitable. “But more interesting is that our study also illustrates that people still view the relationship cultivated with a financial professional as invaluable and better positions them to make sound decisions.’

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The study also found that those placing a priority on protection from outliving retirement savings increased dramatically, from 59% six months ago to 71% in October, according to AXA. Securing protection against market conditions also increased considerably with 68% ranking it as a priority, compared with a little more than half (53%) back in April.

Another notable result: Almost eight in 10 of those polled (78%) ranked income guarantees as a top financial priority, up 16 percentage points from a similar AXA Equitable poll conducted in April.

“It’s no surprise that attitudes and behaviors have changed, especially given the period of economic instability we’re experiencing,’ said Barbara Goodstein, executive vice president and chief innovation officer for AXA Equitable, in a press release. “What is striking, however, is the heightened priority being placed so quickly on securing a stream of lifetime income.’

More than half of those polled (54%) said that they have not made financial changes, nor do they intend to do so. For the quarter of people who have thought about doing something, the actions most considered included meeting with an adviser (62%), reallocating investments, (47%) or making withdrawals (24%).

Of the 21% that have actually taken action amid the volatility, 67% said that they reallocated investments, 56% bought products like annuities, life insurance and stocks, and 24% made withdrawals from 401(k) or 403(b) accounts or liquidated personal investments.

AXA Equitable conducted an online survey in October among 400 randomly chosen U.S. consumers who were between the ages of 35 to 70, with household incomes of $75,000 or higher. The research was conducted by a third-party independent research firm, OTX Research.

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