CARY, N.C.--()--Financial Engines, America’s largest independent investment advisor, needed a better way to analyze its massive database of 401(k) participant demographic information. Using software from SAS, the leader in business analytics software and services, the company will quickly and easily harness investment advisor analytics to more clearly understand what customers want and pinpoint drivers for service enrollment, ultimately resulting in more attractive retirement plan offers.
“Since our services are available to more than 8 million 401(k) participants nationwide, we can learn a great deal about what influences participant retirement choices”
“We chose SAS because we needed a secure, best-in-class solution for managing our customer data,” said Mike Ault, Director of Investor Communications at Financial Engines. “SAS was both easy to implement and scalable, giving us plenty of room to grow.”
SAS will help Financial Engines save considerable time in data manipulation, processing and analysis. In addition to increased efficiencies, the analysis provides a more comprehensive user view. “With more information and engagement, we can create solutions that meet client needs while growing our business,” said Ault.
“Since our services are available to more than 8 million 401(k) participants nationwide, we can learn a great deal about what influences participant retirement choices,” said Ault. “SAS helps us gather that intelligence efficiently, enabling us to quickly adapt and improve user experience.”
About Financial Engines
Financial Engines is the largest independent investment advisor, committed to providing everyone the trusted retirement help they deserve. The company helps investors with their total retirement picture by offering personalized retirement plans for saving, investment, and retirement income. To meet the needs of different investors, Financial Engines offers both online advice and professional management. Co-founded in 1996 by Nobel Prize-winning economist Bill Sharpe, Financial Engines works with America's leading employers and retirement plan providers to make retirement help available to millions of American workers. Financial Engines Advisors LLC is a subsidiary of Financial Engines Inc. (NASDAQ: FNGN).
For more information, please visit financialengines.com.
About SAS
SAS is the leader in business analytics software and services, and the largest independent vendor in the business intelligence market. Through innovative solutions, SAS helps customers at more than 55,000 sites improve performance and deliver value by making better decisions faster. Since 1976 SAS has been giving customers around the world THE POWER TO KNOW®. SAS and all other SAS Institute Inc. product or service names are registered trademarks or trademarks of SAS Institute Inc. in the USA and other countries. ® indicates USA registration. Other brand and product names are trademarks of their respective companies. Copyright © 2012 SAS Institute Inc. All rights reserved.
Financial Reforms Approved in Portugal Bailout - Benzinga
According to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), the officials from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund conducted their fourth evaluation of the country on Monday. According to Finance Minister Vitor Gaspar, in his speech after the proceedings, the 78 billion euros bailout program is on track and doesn't need any adjustments.
The fiscal adjustments have been pushed forward along with the stringent financial reforms demanded by the European Union and the International Monetary Fund in exchange for the loan.
The reforms targets are supposed to make Portugal's deficit meet the target of 4.5% of gross domestic product in 2012 and 3% of the GDP in 2013. The next stage of the package for Portugal is 4 billion euros, which according to Mr. Gaspar is needed to fulfill the financing requirements and fulfill the program's adjustment progress.
In an article of the WSJ, “Mr. Gaspar said that the Portuguese financial system is stronger than a year ago, and its banks will be the most capitalized lenders in Europe following capital injections by the state.”
So far the government is on track with the EU and IMF demands but the predicted growth of GDP is dismal and unemployment has risen to 15.2 percent which is a record, according to The Seattle Times.
Also from the Seattle Times, Portugal has profited from the political consensus in enacting the bailout program which was signed by three separate political parties. The Socialists have been calling for more policies focusing on growth because the bailout program has created the highest unemployment rate on record in Portugal.
The Seattle Times provided an announcement that the Finance Ministry will be injecting more than 6.6 billion euros into three of the largest banks in Portugal, these banks need the money to meet the new capital requirements. Some of the much needed aid will come from government recapitalization funds and the issuance of self-financing bonds.
The laws that European banks are required to follow have become more complex and demanding in lieu of the cascade in economic recessions and bailout aid requested. The ratio between capital-to-risker assets held is up to 9 percent, according to The Seattle Times.
This required cushion is like the U.S banks, which are holding more capital in their vaults than they have in years.
(c) 2012 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
Posted in: News, Politics, Global, Economics, General, Best of Benzinga
AdvertisementSTOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-OCBC downgrades public transport sector - Reuters UK
OCBC Investment Research has downgraded Singapore's public transport service sector to neutral from overweight, saying operational challenges in the city-state are likely to put pressure on margins.
The broker has hold ratings for both public transport operators SMRT Corp Ltd and ComfortDelGro Corp and target prices of S$1.71 and S$1.53 respectively.
Although fuel prices have fallen recently, this will be offset by greater fuel consumption due to greater frequency of bus and train services to satisfy growing demand, said OCBC.
It said the lack of any fare increments this year is also likely to hurt margins for SMRT and ComfortDelGro and more staff will be needed to meet service standards for higher usage.
Shares of SMRT were unchanged at S$1.62 and have fallen 8.5 percent since the start of the year, underperforming the Straits Times Index's 3 percent gain. ComfortDelGro was up 0.3 percent at S$1.455 and has risen 2.8 percent so far this year.
0911 (0111 GMT)
(Reporting by Charmian Kok in Singapore; charmian.kok@thomsonreuters.com)
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8:45 STOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-Index futures up 0.6 pct
Singapore index futures were up 0.6 percent on Tuesday, indicating the benchmark Straits Times Index may open higher.
Asian shares and commodities staged a mild recovery on Tuesday, with stocks holding at around 2012 lows, as investors looked to European policymakers and the wider G7 to take decisive action to address the worsening euro zone crisis.
0843 (0043 GMT)
(Reporting by Charmian Kok in Singapore; charmian.kok@thomsonreuters.com)
Stocks See Choppy Trading Following Last Friday's Sell-Off - U.S. Commentary - NASDAQ
(RTTNews.com) - Stocks showed a lack of direction over the course of the trading day on Monday after ending the previous session substantially lower. The choppy trading came as traders expressed uncertainty about the outlook for the markets following last Friday's sell-off.
The major averages bounced back and forth across the unchanged line, eventually ending the day mixed. While the Dow edged down 17.11 points or 0.1 percent to 12,101.46, the Nasdaq rose 12.53 points or 0.5 percent to 2,760.01 and the S&P 500 crept up 0.13 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 1,278.17.
The lackluster performance on Wall Street came as many traders stayed on the sidelines following the steep losses seen last Friday, which came on much weaker than expected U.S. jobs data.
The report, which showed the weakest job growth in a year, added to concerns about whether the U.S. economic recovery will be able to hold up in light of the ongoing European debt crisis and slowing growth in China.
However, traders seemed reluctant to continue selling stocks amid indications that the recent pullback by the markets has been overdone.
The worries about the economic outlook still led most traders to refrain from going bargain hunting, leading to the choppy trading.
Meanwhile, the markets largely shrugged off a Commerce Department report showing an unexpected drop in new orders for U.S. manufactured goods.
The report showed that factory orders fell by 0.6 percent in April following a revised 2.1 percent drop in March. The decrease surprised economists, who had expected orders to edge up by 0.1 percent.
In corporate news, Salesforce.com (CRM) announced an agreement to acquire social media marketing platform Buddy Media for $689 million in cash and stock. The transaction is expected to be completed during salesforce.com's fiscal third quarter.
Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY) also announced a deal to buy Linen Holdings for about $105 million in cash. The company said the acquisition will not have any effect on its first quarter results.
Meanwhile, shares of Charming Shoppes (CHRS) closed modestly higher even though the apparel retailer reported weaker than expected first quarter earnings and revenues.
Sector News
Despite the lackluster performance by the broader markets, substantial weakness was visible among airline stocks. Reflecting the weakness in the airline sector, the NYSE Arca Airline Index tumbled by 4.3 percent on the day.
US Airways (LCC) and Delta Air Lines (DAL) turned in two of the airline sector's worst performances, with both stocks plummeting by 11.6 percent.
Housing stocks also saw considerable weakness on the day, resulting in a 3.3 percent drop by the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index. With the loss, the index ended the session at its worst closing level in almost five months.
Banking and brokerage stocks also showed significant moves to the downside, with the KBW Bank Index and the NYSE Arca Broker/Dealer Index falling by 2.2 percent and 1.3 percent, respectively.
Meanwhile, gold stocks showed a notable turnaround over the course of the day. After falling as much as 1.6 percent, the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index closed up by 1.4 percent. While gold for August delivery close down $8.20 at $1,613.90, the precious metal moved back to the upside in electronic trading.
Telecom stocks also saw some strength during the session, driving the NYSE Arca Telecom Index up by 1 percent. Qualcomm (QCOM) helped to lead the sector higher.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region came under pressure on Monday following Friday's sell-off on Wall Street. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index tumbled by 1.7 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index plummeted by 2 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets turned in a mixed performance on the day, with the French CAC 40 Index edging up by 0.1 percent, while the German DAX Index fell by 1.2 percent. The U.K. markets were closed for a public holiday.
In the bond market, treasuries gave back some ground after moving sharply higher in recent sessions. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, rose by 6 basis points to 1.527 percent.
Looking Ahead
While the economic calendar remains relatively quiet on Tuesday, the Institute for Supply Management's report on service sector activity is expected to attract some attention.
The index of activity in the sector service is expected to come in unchanged at 53.5 in May, with a reading above 50 indicating growth.
For comments and feedback: contact editorial@rttnews.com
Canadian Stocks Pare Losses After Commodity Prices Rally - Bloomberg
Canadian stocks declined as financial shares fell to a five-month low and a rebound in commodity producers failed to erase the Standard & Poor’s/TSX Composite Index’s retreat.
Royal Bank of Canada (RY) slumped 0.8 percent as financial shares in the S&P/TSX declined 0.7 percent. Research In Motion Ltd. (RIM) tumbled 6.1 percent, dropping to the lowest level since 2003. Suncor Energy Inc. (SU), the nation’s largest energy provider, advanced 0.9 percent after tumbling as much as 1.5 percent. Commodity companies rebounded as the S&P GSCI Index of raw materials rallied 0.6 percent, reversing a 1.6 percent loss that had driven the measure to a level last seen in 2010.
The S&P/TSX fell 25.43 points, or 0.2 percent, to 11,335.77. The index dropped as much as 1.3 percent intraday.
“The problem with the Canadian market is very simple: the more worries there are about a global economic slowdown, the more problems for countries like ours and Australia that are so tied to commodities,” Sebastian van Berkom, a money manager at Van Berkom & Associates in Montreal, said in a telephone interview. The firm oversees C$1.8 billion ($1.7 billion). “When commodities go down, we go down more than elsewhere, and when they rally our market is good again.”
The S&P/TSX dropped 1.3 percent on the final day of last week after U.S. job growth slowed to a one-year low. The measure sank 6.3 percent in May, the biggest monthly decline since September.
To contact the reporter on this story: Steven Chambers in New York at schambers18@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Nick Baker at nbaker7@bloomberg.net
Financial sector contributes the least to universal equity - Livemint.com
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New Delhi: Unitaid promotes access to treatment for patients of HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis, mainly in low-income countries. One of its main funding sources has been the introduction of a levy on air tickets in some countries that endorsed the ...Stocks dominated by investor fear - KSAT 12
Worries about a global growth slowdown and uncertainty surrounding Europe's debt crisis kept investors on edge and trading choppy on Monday.
Still, U.S. markets ultimately closed the day not far from where they opened.
"Europe is front and center, back, left and right," said Dan Greenhaus, chief global strategist at BTIG.
Anxieties over the health of the Spanish banking system and the possibility that Greece could soon exit the euro remain high.
"Last week was so terribly negative that even the absence of negative news gives some support to the market," Greenhaus added.
Still it's impossible to ignore the fear factor still gripping the markets as 10-year Treasury yields remain near all-time record lows. That shows that global investors are willing to forego returns simply for the safety of holding debt backed by the U.S. government.
CNNMoney's Fear and Greed Index remained deeply entrenched in extreme fear territory.
There are also worries about slowing growth in emerging markets such as China and India. Recent reports out of China last week showed the manufacturing sector contracted more than expected in May.
The S&P 500 closed flat. The Nasdaq gained 12 points, or 0.5%. The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 17 points, or 0.1%.
Trading was light on both sides of the Atlantic Monday, according to several traders. Investors are wary of making major moves before they know whether central bankers in Europe and the U.S. would consider further stimulus.
Investors are betting that European leaders might be willing to make tough choices to stave off larger problems in the region.
"There's a belief that with their backs against the wall, European leaders will at least come up with a short-term resolution to help the Spanish banking system," said Peter Boockvar, equity strategist at Miller Tabak.
U.S. stocks tumbled more than 2% Friday in the worst trading day of the year. The Dow erased all its gains for 2012, and the S&P 500 and Nasdaq moved into correction territory -- down more than 10% from the year's highs.
Bond prices retreated slightly in Monday trading, allowing the yield on the 10-year note to rise just above 1.5%.
World markets: European stocks closed mixed. The DAX in Germany fell 1.2%, while France's CAC 40 rose 0.1%. British markets were closed for a bank holiday.
Asian markets ended lower in their first day of trading since the U.S. jobs report. The Shanghai Composite tumbled 2.7%, and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong fell 2%. The Nikkei in Tokyo fell 1.7%.
Economy: Factory orders declined 0.6% in April, the government reported Monday. The report was weaker than the 0.1% increase expected by economists surveyed by Briefing.com. The March decline was revised to a deeper 2.1% drop.
Companies: Shares of Facebook, which have gotten hammered since the company's IPO, continued to fall.
Groupon shares dropped more than 7% after falling sharply Friday. The online discount service, which has been dogged with questions about its accounting practices since its initial public offering in November, ended its lock-up period Friday, meaning that insiders who own shares are now able to sell them.
Shares of Chesapeake Energy rose after the embattled natural gas company said it is replacing four members of its board of directors in response to urging from two of its largest shareholders, including Carl Icahn.
Shares of AutoNation, the largest U.S. car dealership, jumped after it reported its May new car sales rose 45%. That was almost twice as good as the 26% rise in industry-wide U.S. car sales reported by major automakers Friday. But the industry-wide sales pace was generally less than forecast, as it was the weakest pace of 2012.
Shares of Starbucks rose after the coffee chain said its top executives would discuss new steps to boost its domestic retail business later Monday.
Research in Motion's stock sank to a low not seen since 2003 amid growing speculation that the BlackBerry maker will soon put itself up for sale.
Currencies and commodities: The dollar rose against the euro and Japanese yen, but fell versus the British pound.
Oil for July delivery gained $1.07 to $84.30 a barrel.
Stocks waver as calm returns to the market - Post-Crescent
Calm returned to the stock market Monday after a spasm of fearful selling last week.
Major market indexes were mixed in early trading.
The Dow Jones industrial average opened at its lowest level since December after a 275-point sell-off on Friday caused by grim economic signals, especially a dismal report on the U.S. labor market.
Bond investors were less concerned about the finances of some troubled European countries. Bond yields fell for Italy and Spain, meaning that they appear less likely to default. Lower bond yields mean decreased borrowing costs for those debt-strapped nations.
The Dow fell 17 points to 12,101 in the first hour of trading. The Standard & Poors 500 index fell 3 to 1,275. The Nasdaq composite index rose 2 to 2,749.
European stocks were mixed. Asian shares closed sharply lower, extending Fridays selling.
The price of the 10-year U.S. Treasury note fell, lifting its yield to 1.52 percent. The yield hit a record low of 1.44 percent on Friday as fears of a global slowdown increased demand for safe investments.
As the outlook for the U.S. economy darkens, Europe faces other threats. Spains banks are in shambles, and Cyprus appears close to joining the club of bailed-out countries that already includes Greece, Portugal and Ireland.
Voters in Greek elections this month might choose leaders who intend to reject Europes bailout money and harsh spending cuts. That could lead to Greeces expulsion from the euro, potentially rattling financial markets.
Among stocks making big moves, Chesapeake Energy rose 2 percent after the company said it would replace four board members. The second-biggest U.S. natural gas company is under pressure from the activist shareholder Carl Icahn, who acquired a 7.6 percent stake in the company. Homebuilder Lennar fell 3.4 percent, following an 8 percent drop Friday. The stock is down 11 percent since April 1.
Stock indexes rose in France, Spain and Italy. German stocks were lower. Earlier Monday, Asian markets were rattled by Fridays U.S. jobs report and signs of slower growth in China. The Shanghai Composite Index fell 2.7 percent, its biggest slide this year.
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