Retirement Advisor

Participants with a 401(k) plan who invest in target-date funds (TDFs) tend to stick with these investments over time.

Stocks fell Tuesday after consumer confidence dropped to the lowest level since April 2009. Retailers and other companies that depend on consumer spending had the steepest losses.

Consumers' confidence in August dropped almost 15 points to the lowest level since April 2009 as worries about the economy fueled the wildest stock market swings since the financial meltdown in 2008.

South Carolina will hire lawyers to monitor investments in the state's retirement system for waste, fraud and abuse.

More U.S. pension plans seem to be using some alternative investments, but fewer plans seem to be using alternative investments a lot.

While financial advisors agree that client referrals are critical to a firms growth, nearly half say theyve asked only a small percentage of their clients for a referral, according to an SEI Quick Poll released Monday.

Following the Insured Retirement Institutes announcement on Aug. 17 that variable annuity sales increased 23% in the first quarter of 2011, the organization announced that second quarter annuity sales are up again.

Beginning in 2012, the SEC will require all participant-directed retirement plans to provide a detailed quarterly breakdown of all plan cost that participants pay.