The Correlations of Professionalization and Compensation Sources with the Ethical Development of Personal Investment Planners (pp. 223-236) DOWNLOAD FULL-TEXT ARTICLE
Kenneth S. Bigel

ABSTRACT
Recent controversies concerning personal financial planners, and investment planners in particular, have centered around two issues: competence and ethics. This paper has focused on the ethical development of a sample of investment planners in connection with the correlative roles of professionalization and compensation sources. Certified Financial Planner designees were found to manifest higher ethical development scores than non-Certified Financial Planner designees. Fee-based planners manifested no significantly different ethical development scores than their counterparts. Other demographic variables were also studied.

Comment on S. Bigel's Paper (pp. 237-256) DOWNLOAD FULL-TEXT ARTICLE
Robert P. Goss

Managing College Tuition Inflation Using a Surplus Framework Methodology
(pp. 257-271) DOWNLOAD FULL-TEXT ARTICLE
Judson W. Russell, Robert Brooks

ABSTRACT
This paper explores prepaid college tuition plans and develops a methodology for managing college tuition inflation. A surplus framework methodology is derived that employs various securities and incorporates both the assets and liabilities associated with prepaid college tuition plans. Although we present a methodology for plan management, the approach is applicable for individuals who manage their own college investment accounts. An interesting result of this analysis is that U.S. Treasury inflation-indexed securities should be included in the asset allocation decision for college tuition inflation management. By incorporating both the assets and liabilities from the plans into a surplus framework methodology, this paper provides a new portfolio management tool for plan administrators and individuals. Our assertion is that better managed plans offer more college financing alternatives for individuals.

Do Dividend Reinvestment Plans Contribute to Industrial Firm Value and Efficiency?
(pp. 273-289) DOWNLOAD FULL-TEXT ARTICLE
Andrew Saporoschenko

ABSTRACT
This paper examines four hypotheses to test whether industrial firms offering DRIPs are structured to operate efficiently, given that DRIPs are a cheap source of outside financing for a firm. The hypotheses are derived from the corporate finance literature and partially based on a review of the previous DRIP-related finance literature. Evidence is found that larger firms will be more likely to offer DRIPs, which supports a bookkeeping hypothesis. No difference in valuation is found between DRIP firms and the other industry-matched firms using a Tobin’s q proxy. Several cash flow measures are found not to be higher for DRIP firms. © 1999 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.

Planning to Move to Retirement Housing (pp. 291-300) DOWNLOAD FULL-TEXT ARTICLE
Karen M. Gibler, George P. Moschis

ABSTRACT
As the size and diversity of the older segment of our population grows, they will need increased assistance in planning for and choosing appropriate housing from the array of options offered in the marketplace. This national survey of people age 55 and older indicates interest in retirement community housing among all socioeconomic groups, but especially among women and better-educated seniors. Facilities that offer access to medical services, transportation, and shopping while providing housekeeping and personal care services along with social activities will appeal to these consumers.

Mutual Fund Shareholders: Characteristics, Investor Knowledge, and Sources of Information (pp. 301-316) DOWNLOAD FULL-TEXT ARTICLE
Gordon J. Alexander, Peter J. Nigro

ABSTRACT
Over the past twenty or so years, mutual funds have become an increasingly popular investment vehicle. Ownership of stock, bond, and money market mutual funds rose from 6% of U.S. households in 1980 to 42% in 1998, while the total assets held by mutual funds soared by almost 4,000%, increasing from $135 billion to roughly $5.5 trillion at year-end 1998 (Investment Company Institute, 1999). This dramatic growth has raised policymakers’ concern with the level of investor knowledge regarding the costs and risks associated with mutual funds and with the types of distribution channels permitted to sell mutual funds. To provide perspective on these concerns, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (“OCC”) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) contracted with a market research firm to conduct a nationwide telephone survey of a randomly selected sample of 2,000 mutual fund investors (see Alexander, Jones, and Nigro, 1996).