FTSE Expands Environmental Indexes
FTSE Group is expanding its FTSE Environmental Opportunities Index Series with the addition of nine new indexes designed to appeal to investors seeking to access the growing low-carbon economy.
Originally launched in July 2008, the environmental index series is derived from the FTSE Global Equity Index Series and includes companies with at least 20% of their business derived from environmental markets or technologies. Constituents are researched by Impax Group plc, an environmental investment company that has partnered with FTSE to develop a range of indices to cover environmental markets.
The expansion adds indexes that identify and segment renewable energy, energy efficiency, water and waste management markets.
The FTSE Environmental Opportunities indexes are part of FTSE's broader Environmental Markets Index Series that also includes an index tracking the performance of the world's largest pure-play environmental technology companies. Together, the indexes are designed to offer a set of performance measurement tools to track environmental markets.
"The FTSE Environmental Market indices track the performance of those companies that are best positioned to benefit from the shift to a global low-carbon economy," says Will Oulton, FTSE Group head of responsible investment. "The expansion of the Environmental Opportunities series offers investors the opportunity to identify those leading global companies with a comprehensive benchmark and tradable index series."
FTSE is a creator and manager of indexes with clients in 77 countries managing both global and domestic indexes. Additional information can be found at www.ftse.com.
Morningstar Introduces New Managed Portfolios
Morningstar Investment Services Inc. is adding three new strategies to its individually customizable stock portfolios: the Tortoise, Hare and Dividend stock baskets. Each is patterned after the successful portfolios of the same name featured in Morningstar StockInvestor and Morningstar DividendInvestor newsletters.
Each stock basket invests in high-quality companies that are undervalued. The Tortoise invests in firms that are relatively stable; the Hare invests in firms that are experiencing rapid growth, and the Dividend stock basket invests in high-yielding stocks with the potential for dividend growth and capital appreciation. Additional information can be found at http://global.morningstar.com/stockportfolios.
ProShares Launches New ETFs
ProFunds Group, a manager of short and leveraged funds, is launching eight new Commodity ProShares, one of the first ETF families to provide short or leveraged exposure to the overall commodities market, as well as crude oil, gold and silver benchmarks.
In addition, the firm is creating four new Currency ProShares, which are among the first to provide short or leveraged exposure to the Euro and Yen. The full line up of ProShares can be seen at www.proshares.com/finds.
Geneos Advances Technology Platform
Geneos Wealth Management Inc. a Denver-based broker-dealer, is enhancing its technology platform for financial advisors to automate many of the tasks associated with account opening, compliance, reporting and other functions.
The new Nexus 2.0 allows advisors to manage data in multiple formats and applications and enables paperless document imaging. Nexus 2.0 is designed to eliminate most faxing and to reduce printing and mailing costs and audit preparation time. Additional information can be found at www.geneoswealth.com.
Dow Jones Offers Middle East Indexes
Dow Jones Indexes is launching the Dow Jones Kuwait Titans 30 and the Dow Jones UAE Select indexes. Both indexes have been licensed to provide the basis for exchange-traded funds available on Euronext Paris.
The Kuwait Titans measures 30 of the largest and most liquid stocks traded on the Kuwait Stock Exchange. The UAE Select measures the largest and most liquid stocks trading on the Dubai Financial Market, Abu Dhabi Securities Market and Dubai International Financial Exchange. Further information is available at www.djindexes.com.
Vanguard Merges Municipal Funds
Vanguard is merging the $3.2 billion Vanguard Insured Long-Term Tax-Exempt fund into the
$2.8 billion Vanguard Long-Term Tax-Exempt Fund to create one uninsured fund. tages of insured bonds, Additional information can be found at www.vanguard.com.