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Chapter 30: Pension Plan Management
1. Under a defined contribution plan, employees agree to contribute some percentage of their salaries, up to 20 percent, to
the firm's pension fund.
a.
True
b.
False
ANSWER:
False
2. If employees have a right to receive pension benefits even if they leave the company prior to retirement, their pension
rights are said to be vested.
a.
True
b.
False
ANSWER:
True
3. From a pure cost standpoint, a firm with a defined contribution plan would be more likely to hire older workers than a
firm with a defined benefit plan.
a.
True
b.
False
ANSWER:
True
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4. Ms. Lloyd, who is 25 and expects to retire at age 60, has just been hired by the Chambers Corporation. Ms. Lloyd's
current salary is $30,000 per year, but her wages are expected to increase by 5 percent annually over the next 35 years.
Chambers has a defined benefit pension plan in which workers receive 2 percent of their final year's wages for each year
of employment. Assume a world of certainty. Further, assume that all payments occur at year-end. What is Ms. Lloyd's
expected annual retirement benefit, rounded to the nearest thousands of dollars?
a.
$35,000
b.
$57,000
c.
$89,000
d.
$116,000
e.
$132,000
ANSWER:
d
5. Arnold Rossiter is a 40-year-old employee of the Barrington Company who will retire at age 60 and expects to live to
age 75. The firm has promised a retirement income of $20,000 at the end of each year following retirement until death.
The firm's pension fund is expected to earn 7 percent annually on its assets and the firm uses 7% to discount pension
benefits. What is Barrington's annual pension contribution to the nearest dollar for Mr. Rossiter? (Assume certainty and
end-of-year cash flows.)
a.
$2,756
b.
$3,642
c.
$4,443
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d.
$4,967
e.
$5,491
ANSWER:
c
6. The performance measurement of stock portfolio managers must recognize the risk inherent in the investment portfolio.
One way to incorporate risk into performance measurement is to examine the portfolio's alpha, which measures the
vertical distance of the portfolio's return above or below the Security Market Line.
a.
True
b.
False
ANSWER:
True
7. Which of the following statements about pension plan portfolio performance is incorrect?
a.
Alpha analysis, which relies on the Capital Asset Pricing Model, considers the risk of the portfolio when
measuring performance.
b.
Peer comparison examines the relative performance of portfolio managers with similar investment objectives.
c.
A portfolio annual return of 12 percent from one investment advisor is not necessarily better than a return of
10 percent from another advisor.
Chapter 30: Pension Plan Management
d.
In managing the retiree portfolio, fund managers often use immunization techniques such as alpha analysis to
eliminate, or at least significantly reduce, the risk associated with changing interest rates.
e.
Pension fund sponsors must evaluate the performance of their portfolio managers periodically as a basis for
future asset allocations.
ANSWER:
d
8. Which of the following statements about pension plans if any, is incorrect?
a.
Under a defined benefit plan, the employer agrees to give retirees a specifically defined benefit, such as $500
per month or 50 percent of the employee's final salary.
b.
A portable pension plan is one that an employee can carry from one employer to another.
c.
An employer's obligation is satisfied under a defined contribution plan when it makes the required
contributions to the plan. The risk of inadequate investment returns is borne by the employee.
d.
If assets exceed the present value of benefits, the pension plan is fully funded.
e.
A defined contribution plan is, in effect, a savings plan that is funded by employers, although many plans also
permit additional contributions by employees.
ANSWER:
d
Chapter 30: Pension Plan Management
9. Which of the following statements about defined contribution plans is incorrect?
a.
In general, employees can choose the investment vehicle under a defined contribution plan. Thus, highly risk-
averse employees can choose low-risk investments, while more risk-tolerant employees can choose high-risk
investments.
b.
In a defined contribution plan, the employer must make larger-than-average contributions to the pension plan
when investment returns have been below expectations.
c.
Defined benefit plans are used more often by large corporations than by small companies.
d.
The PBGC insures a portion of pension benefits.
e.
A defined contribution plan places the risk of poor pension portfolio performance on the employee.
ANSWER:
b
10. Kumar Consulting operates several stock investment portfolios that are used by firms for investment of pension plan
assets. Last year, one portfolio had a realized return of 12.6 percent and a beta coefficient of 1.15. The average T-bond
rate was 7 percent and the realized rate of return on the S&P 500 was 12 percent. What was the portfolio's alpha?
a.
−0.75%
b.
−0.15%
c.
0%
d.
0.15%
e.
0.75%
ANSWER:
b
12.75%.
Alpha = 12.6% − 12.75% = −0.15%.
POINTS:
1
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