Benefits May 21, 2003

More Newspapers Offering Web-Only Recruitment Ads

May 21, 2003 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Nearly half of the largest 245 newspapers in the country now offer a Web only, help wanted advertising option for employers placing recruitment ads.
Reported by

Overall, 49% of the newspapers surveyed are now offering a rate card for Internet-only recruitment advertising, up from 32% in the fourth quarter of last year. More significantly, it represents a shift in revenue for newspapers that have historically stuck to their core print product, according to data from Corzen, Inc.

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The shift has not just happened at the larger metro papers, as smaller papers are beginning to offer online job postings as well.

Newspapers have apparently done their homework; with the average price among all newspapers for a 30-day Internet only recruitment is $196, comparable to what the larger national online sites charge:

  • CareerBuilder charges $200 for a one month job posting
  • Yahoo’s HotJobs is $275 for a one month ad
  • Monster charges $305 for 60 days online.

However, all three national online job sites offer lower rates for employers posting multiple jobs. “Competitors are offering comparable pricing for their online listings,” said Bruce Murray, Corzen’s CEO in a statement. “However, for many newspapers, this price is less than the price of the same ad in print. The ultimate affect on newspapers’ earnings is likely to become apparent as hiring picks up. Publishers might see the same volume of ads, but it is not clear that they will generate the same total revenue.”

Investing May 20, 2003

Large-Cap US Value Funds Enjoy Market Hey Day

May 20, 2003 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Domestic large-cap value funds are becoming the cat's meow as a still-developing broad market recovery pushed up industrial giants like General Electric Co., Citigroup Inc., and Xerox Corp.
Reported by

While these funds – one of the most popular types of mutual funds among US investors – are up an average 14.9% over the past three months, that still trails the average diversified US stock fund’s 16.2%-increase during the same period, according to a Reuters report.   Large-company value managers say they see still more growth potential as corporate earnings are expected to improve and company cost-cutting measures take hold.

The best performer for the three months, based on funds with at least $100 million in assets, was the Neuberger Guardian fund, which exploded by   21.5%, according to Lipper data.

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The biggest fund in the category is the $48.2-billion American Funds Washington Mutual fund, according to Lipper. The fund was up 14.3% over the past three months.   Another big fund is the $11-billion Lord Abbett Affiliated fund which gained 16.5% in the three-month span, according to Lipper.

Robert Morris, director of equity investments for Lord Abbett, said the Affiliated Fund benefited from gains in companies such as Apple Computer Inc. which is up about 26.3% year-to-date through Monday and Xerox, up 29.2%.   “We’ve seen nice bounces in some selected technology stocks,” he told Reuters. “We are trying to find companies within the technology sectors that look live they’ve been overdone.”

Fund managers say that, after a rough 2002, when the average large-cap value fund fell about 20%, they are seeing a rebound in many stocks that had been hit hard.

Large-cap value funds have about $181.9 billion in combined assets, making them one of the largest types of US stock funds. Their price-conscious managers look for stocks that are considered cheap based on price-to-earnings ratios or other measures, or whose prices have been knocked down based on worries about restructuring or other issues.

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