Another example, as investors age, they may start to shift more money into more-conservative investment choices, such as stable value funds, with less risk. The investor risks being squeezed by inflation down the road. Fund Profiles. The table below lists the funds available for investment through the County of Orange Retirement Health Savings Plan administered by ICMA-RC. The Fund invests primarily in a diversified and tiered portfolio of stable value investment contracts and in fixed income securities, fixed income mutual funds, and fixed income commingled trust funds ("fixed income assets") … A stable value fund is often an investment option in qualified retirement plans such as 401(k) plans. Center Tool. The owner of a stable value fund will continue to receive the agreed-upon interest payments regardless of the state of the economy. For example, those investors who have decades before retirement may choose to keep most of their portfolio in equity funds, which have more risk and more potential for higher long-term returns. However, insurance companies have been increasing their fees due to the perceived risks of a more volatile market. An insurance company or bank is contractually obligated to protect the fund's investors from any loss of capital or interest. The Prudential Guaranteed Long term fund, which accounts for approximately 33% of the overall Stable Value … EBPAQC "Topix" Primer, Stable Value Funds … Technical Guidance. Additionally, the State of Connecticut Stable Value Option will have a reduction in the expense ratio applied to part of the overall portfolio making up the Stable Value Option. Investors should match their portfolio to their objective and risk profile. While stable-value funds can return more than a money-market fund, annuity-like stable value funds also put a cap on the fund’s upside. For details about the Vantagepoint Funds and our investment philosophy, visit vantagepointfunds.org. They are designed to protect … Research . The investment options for the Commonwealth of Virginia 457 Plan are organized into three pathways to make it easier for you to implement your investment decisions according to your knowledge of investments and investment style. They don't grow over time, but they don't lose value either. But, to dampen volatility, they may keep a portion of their portfolio in a stable value fund or other more-conservative option. In retirement, some investors even keep two to five years' worth of expenses in stable value funds, so they know that money will be there no matter what happens in equities.For more information about ICMA-RC's stable value fund, VT PLUS Fund, including its risks, click this link. Stable Value Fund or Common Collective Trust Many defined contribution plans obtain beneficial ownership interests in bank or collective trust funds, allowing several smaller unaffiliated plans to gain the economies of scale necessary to participate in the stable value … Vantagepoint PLUS Fund Selected as Stable Value Option. Stable Value Fund. Money-market funds tend to invest in fixed income securities that mature, on average, in 30 to 60 days, but stable value funds tend to invest in fixed income securities that mature, on average, in one to three years. The insurance piece of these funds makes them nearly as safe as money market funds. It invests primarily in traditional guaranteed investment contracts (GICs), separate account GICs, and synthetic GICs with an objective to offer a … While many other investments drop in value, the owner of a stable bond fund continues to receive the agreed-upon interest payments and never loses principal regardless of the state of the economy. As the name implies, stable value funds are a type of cash fund that resembles a money market fund by offering protection of principal while paying stable rates of interest. Investors should be aware that all investments, including money-market funds and stable value funds, have unique risks and no investment should be considered risk-free. (For employees hired in 2011 or later, Intel directs all contributions into the 401k plan, and there's no traditional pension as a backup). ... (DCIO) team, the Funds are offered by ICMA-RC Services, LLC (RC Services), an SEC registered broker-dealer and FINRA member firm. Investopedia uses cookies to provide you with a great user experience. Investors also should check the expenses associated with stable value funds. A stable value fund is an insured bond portfolio, popular with investors that have low risk tolerances. T. Rowe Price Stable Value Fund A Asset Class: Stable Value/Money Market Category: Stable Value Investment Objective The Trust seeks to maximize current income and maintain principal stability of … It's only available in some employer-based retirement plans. RC … A stable value fund is an option in many retirement plans, but often carries lower yields and higher fees. A pension plan is a retirement plan that requires an employer to make contributions into a pool of funds set aside for a worker's future benefit. A … The bonds in such a fund are sometimes called "wrapped" bonds, referring to the fact that they are insured. Stable value funds tend to pay higher interest rates than cash equivalent options, such as money-market funds, because they invest in slightly longer-term, but not long-term, fixed income securities. By using Investopedia, you accept our. A money market fund is a type of mutual fund that invests in high-quality, short-term debt instruments and cash equivalents. Copyright © ICMA-RC document.write(new Date().getFullYear()), VantageCare Retirement Health Savings (RHS), VantageCare Retirement Health Savings (RHS) Program, Center for State & Local Govenment Excellence, ICMA-RC Customer Relationship Summary for Retail Investors (Form CRS), Center for State and Local Government Excellence, Overview of Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity Plans, We join you in an unwavering commitment to delivering high-quality services and innovative resources to help public sector employees Engage, Build, and RealizeRetirement. A stable value fund is a portfolio of bonds that are insured to protect the investor against a decline in yield or a loss of capital. The insurer must compensate the fund for any losses. Historically, such funds provide a slightly higher rate of return than money market funds. The PLUS Fund is a stable value fund. A stable value fund is inherently as safe an investment as a money market fund. RC Services is a wholly-owned subsidiary of ICMA-RC … A floating rate fund is a fund that invests in financial instruments paying a variable or floating interest rate. Because of the insurance, however, these funds come with extra management costs and fees, which can be a drag on the already lower yields that these investments offer due to their low risk. Stable value funds can help smooth out the volatility in a diversified portfolio. A stable value fund (SVF) is a conservative fund investment option that's available only to participants in defined contribution plans, such as 401 (k)s. It is an investment option focused on the … The insurance piece of these funds makes them nearly as safe as money market funds. The offers that appear in this table are from partnerships from which Investopedia receives compensation. Money-market funds have returned barely more than 0 percent over the past several years, while stable value funds have generally returned 1.5 percent to 2.5 percent. A stable value fund provides a conservative investment option with lower risk than fixed income and equity securities. A floating rate fund invests in bonds and debt instruments whose interest payments fluctuate with an underlying interest rate level. View Fund … Five Key Things for Plan Sponsors to Consider When Choosing a Stable Value Fund . Income funds pursue current income over capital appreciation by investing in stocks that pay dividends, bonds and other income-generating securities. Stable value funds remain just that: stable. Stable Value Pooled Funds (Pooled Funds): ... (DCIO) team, the Funds are offered by ICMA-RC Services, LLC (RC Services), an SEC registered broker-dealer and FINRA member firm. If you don't see the fund you are looking for, please submit a request to productops@fi360.com. Stable value funds can provide portfolio diversification and help mitigate some of the downside risk in your overall portfolio. Fixed income refers to assets and securities that bear fixed cash flows for investors, such as fixed rate interest or dividends. How Floating Rate Funds Can Offer Yields in a Rising Rate Market, The Benefits and Risks of Fixed Income Products. A stable value fund may also be an appealing alternative to lower-yielding vehicles such as money market funds for the portion of an investor's portfolio that is used to counter market volatility. A retirement income that seems sufficient initially can gradually become inadequate as the years pass and inflation mounts. Stable Value Pooled Funds (Pooled Funds): ... (DCIO) team, the Funds are offered by ICMA-RC Services, LLC (RC Services), an SEC registered broker-dealer and FINRA member firm. Stable value funds have diversified portfolios of fixed-income securities that closely resemble what you'd find in a typical bond fund. Stable value funds can provide the essential elements of balance and stability in a portfolio weighted in growth investments. Stable-value funds typically yield a couple of percentage points more than money-market funds. Stable value funds are a common option in some retirement plans such as company 401(k) plans, especially aimed at those savers nearing retirement. This "stable value" is attractive to many participants. Also, this is past performance that may not repeat in the future. 3 Subject to plan rules. Contact ICMA-RC … Only qualified, participant-directed, defined … The current funds reporting into Stable Value Vision are shown below. Similar to many cash equivalent options, it is reported with a stable price with earnings posted each day. Stable value funds are structured in two ways: as a separately managed account, which is a stable value fund managed for one specific 401(k) plan; or as a commingled fund, which pools together assets from many 401(k) plans. They are no different from any bond fund, except they are insured. Historically, their fees have been in the low range compared to most mutual funds. Stable value funds tend to pay higher interest rates than cash equivalent … Research ... team, the Funds are offered by ICMA-RC Services, LLC (RC Services), an SEC registered broker-dealer and FINRA member firm. A mutual fund is a type of investment vehicle consisting of a portfolio of stocks, bonds, or other securities, which is overseen by a professional money manager. 1A stable value fund may not be available in all retirement plans. In conjunction with TRS, we underwent a rigorous due diligence … Stable value investments seek to provide relatively stable income that is comparable to shorter- to intermediate-term bonds over time but with preservation of capital. RC Services is a wholly-owned subsidiary of ICMA-RC … "A stable value fund serves to protect participants against a decline in net asset value and offers a smoother return profile. A stable value fund is an insured bond portfolio, popular with investors that have low risk tolerances. The insurance is commonly issued in the form of a so-called synthetic guaranteed investment certificate (GIC). Commingled funds … RC Services is a wholly-owned subsidiary of ICMA-RC … Stable value funds can provide portfolio diversification and help mitigate some of the downside risk in your overall portfolio. The underlying portfolio within a stable value fund is a short- to intermediate-term bond portfolio, therefore over most periods the fund will provide a term premium over a money market fund. If your plan offers investment options known as “competing funds” (for example, a money market account, short-term bond funds or the TIAA Real Estate Account) and you want to transfer money from TIAA Stable Value to one of those options, the amount you transfer must first be directed to a noncompeting option (for example, a stock fund or long-term bond fund… Fund Category Stable Value/Cash Management Bond Balanced/Asset Allocation U.S. Stock International/Global Stock ... ICMA-RC Services, LLC is a wholly owned broker-dealer subsidiary of ICMA-RC and member FINRA/SIPC. Currently, the average stable-value fund yields 3%, while the average taxable money fund yields … Clicking on a fund name will open a profile which describes the investment, including performance, objectives, statistics, and other fund … Many ICMA-RC participants have access to a stable value fund in their retirement plan.1 You may not have heard much about this type of investment prior to joining your retirement plan because it's not available in IRAs or taxable brokerage accounts. However, there is a danger if a portfolio is weighted too heavily in lower-yielding investments such as stable value funds. Like their money … In times of recession or stock market volatility, stable value funds are guaranteed. Stable value funds invest in high-quality government and corporate bonds, short-term, and intermediate-term. The longer-maturity fixed income securities typically pay higher interest rates, but they also have more risk of losing value if market interest rates go up or of possible default. A stable value fund typically provides a participant market value protection through a "wrap contract" from an insurance company or other investment contract which guarantees the payment of plan benefits at book value, even when the market value of the stable value fund … Most professional financial advisors recommend a portfolio that is a mix of safe but low-yielding investments and risky but potentially rewarding investments, with a gradual reweighting towards safety as the investor approaches retirement age. The use of insurance wrappers to create a stable net asset value … The EBPAQC has compiled the following tools and resources to assist members in understanding and auditing stable value investments. Please log in to your ICMA-RC retirement account to review your specific plan's fund lineup. 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