Value of state road pension investments grows
Posted on Tuesday, August 19, 2008
URL: http://www.nwanews.com/adg/News/234711/
Bolstered by gains in energy stocks, the state Highway Employees Retirement System investments increased in value by $ 56 million in the fiscal year that ended June 30, a system official said Monday.
The investment return of 8. 65 percent was one of the top results among the nation’s public pension systems, said Larry Dickerson, executive secretary for the system.
The gains run counter to losses reported by the state judicial, teacher and police retirement systems for the past fiscal year. The stock market has dropped because of high gasoline prices, declining housing prices and an overall economic downturn, consultants said.
The highway retirement system’s managers “did well, and we are pleased with the performance, given how the [stock ] market is doing,” Dickerson said.
CastleArk Management of Chicago is the system’s stock investment manager, he said. CastleArk and Meridian Investment Advisors of Little Rock are the bond investment managers.
System investments totaled $ 1. 241 billion as of June 30, up from $ 1. 185 billion on June 30, 2007, Dickerson said.
The stock market investments recorded an 11. 4 percent return in the past fiscal year, ending up at $ 688. 4 million on June 30, he said.
Dickerson said the system’s energy stock investments totaled $ 247 million on June 30, up from $ 168 million a year earlier.
The system has had substantial investments in energy stocks for several years and CastleArk advocated these, he said.
The system’s stock investments in financial-sector companies such as investment, insurance, credit-card and commodities future exchange firms totaled $ 50 million, he said.
Domestic bond investments recorded a 5. 2 percent return in the past fiscal year to reach $ 552. 1 million on June 30, Dickerson said.
The system includes 3, 713 working members who are paid an average annual salary of $ 35, 984 and 2, 662 retired members who receive an average annual pension of $ 25, 798, according to the actuarial firm of Gabriel, Roeder, Smith & Co. of Dallas.
The state paid $ 16. 1 million into the system last fiscal year, with employees chipping in $ 7. 7 million, Dickerson said.
The system’s unfunded liabilities totaled $ 13. 6 million as of June 30, 2007. That’s the amount by which the system’s liabilities exceed the actuarial value of the system’s assets.
In earlier reports for last past fiscal year, the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System’s investments dropped in value by more than $ 600 million, to $ 10. 87 billion; the Arkansas Judicial Retirement System investments dipped in value by $ 8. 5 million, to $ 160. 7 million; and the Arkansas State Police Retirement System investments fell in value by $ 35 million, to $ 214. 9 million.