Several recent changes in law and regulations have altered the calculation of a plan's future liabilities, mostly in plan sponsors' favor.
Recent and near-future gains in funded status aside, plan sponsors should formulate policies to address likely higher minimum contributions going forward.
The $6 billion deal could be a harbinger of more such asset de-risking moves by other defined-benefit plan sponsors.
For most penison-plan sponsors, it's as simple as making a scheduled contribution a month early.
With many pension plans too low-funded to justify aggressive fixed-income investment, lump-sum buyouts and annuities are popular derisking strategies.
