Why Are Stocks So High?

Because corporations have been returning more of their profits over to shareholders and less to workers, especially over the past 30 years, according to authoritative recent research. The implication is that investors' gains have come at the expense of workers, who own little stock.
Anecdotal Evidence

Apple Stock, Bourbon and Cigars

By Kerry Pechter
Every summer, I try to spend a weekend with two old friends. We used to talk about our spouses and children. Now we talk most about retirement and money.
401(k) technology

‘Auto-portability’ gets green light from DOL

By Editorial Staff
Retirement Clearinghouse, creator of a technology by which small abandoned 401(k) accounts would automatically follow their owners to their next plan, has received the permissions it needed to begin marketing its service to large recordkeepers like Fidelity, Vanguard and others.
Research Roundup

‘The Specter of the Giant Three,’ and Other Gripping Yarns

By Editorial Staff
Four recent research papers that we think will interest you are summarized here. Topics include the dominance of shareholder voting by Vanguard, BlackRock and SSgA, the limits of stock-picking skills, a new way to design group variable income annuities, and a refutation of the idea that welfare reform devastated a lot of Americans.

Honorable Mention

By Editorial Staff
Innovator “Buffer ETFs” now trade on the Cboe; Don’t fund Medicare-for-all with tax on savers: ARA; Lincoln Financial provides data on the cost of assisted living and long-term care services; JPMorgan, Urban League, aim to boost financial wellness of African-Americans.

COVER STORIES YOU MAY HAVE MISSED

July 25, 2019

‘APIs’ and the Future of Annuities

By Kerry Pechter
Catching up with the 'application programming interface' technology train is essential for annuity issuers. APIs integrate annuities into advisor platforms, reduce NIGO applications, and give clients a fluid online experience.
July 18, 2019

T. Rowe Price Launches Retirement Payout Vehicle

By Kerry Pechter
'Retirement 2020’s managed payout program is not a 5% withdrawal annually; rather, it pays 5% of the rolling 60-month NAV,” a T. Rowe Price spokesperson told RIJ. 'The participant maintains the same number of...
July 11, 2019

Envestnet’s Big Annuities Play

By Kerry Pechter
Envestnet, with the help of six major annuity issuers, has built a platform where advisors from broker-dealers, banks and RIAs can blend insurance products and investments in the same financial plan. It's a service...