Oppenheimer Management Corp

Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co. said Wednesday that it and top executives of Oppenheimer Management Corp. will acquire the huge mutual fund company for about $150 million. MassMutual, the nation's 11th-largest life insurer, said the purchase of Oppenheimer from British & Commonwealth Holdings PLC is subject to approval of the mutual funds' directors and shareholders. Under the proposed agreement, Oppenheimer Management would continue to operate independently and retain key management.

Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co. said Wednesday that it and top executives of Oppenheimer Management Corp. will acquire the huge mutual fund company for about $150 million. MassMutual, the nation's 11th-largest life insurer, said the purchase of Oppenheimer from British & Commonwealth Holdings PLC is subject to approval of the mutual funds' directors and shareholders. Under the proposed agreement, Oppenheimer Management would continue to operate independently and retain key management.

The New York City investment firm recently increased its holdings in Smith International, a Newport Beach oil-services company, to 1.89 million common shares, or 8.32%, from 1.5 million shares. According to SEC records, Oppenheimer Management Corp. bought the stock for passive investment purposes and does not intend to seek control of the company.

A record $24.5 billion was invested in equity mutual funds in January, surpassing the old high of $18.4 billion set in January 1994, according to estimates published Wednesday by the Investment Company Institute. Money is pouring into stock funds at the same time the U.S. market surges to all-time highs and markets ranging from Germany to Hong Kong rally. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 7.33% in the first six weeks of 1996 to a record 5,492.12.

Small investors who hoped that Friday's selloff would lead the way to higher stock prices outnumbered sellers Monday as the market mounted a mild comeback. Calls flooded into mutual fund groups over the weekend as investors sought information and logged buy or sell orders. Three times the normal number of callers contacted discount brokerage Charles Schwab & Co. between Friday and Monday, spokesman Tom Taggat said.

Purchases of stock mutual funds have slowed in September from the high levels of July and August, as small investors have apparently turned more cautious about the market after its run to new heights. "It's the first time in a long time that we've seen a falloff in new fund" purchases, said Tim Pitts, executive vice president of Oppenheimer Management Corp. in New York. "It's possible people are starting to think the market is getting a little expensive."

A decade ago, Bridget A. Macaskill was on the fast track to personal and financial success as the marketing director of a $2-billion-a-year British food company. But she knew virtually nothing about investing. "It just wasn't something I thought much about 10 years ago," she says. "Any excess money I had went into the bank." Today, she is president and chief operating officer of Oppenheimer Management Corp.

Some of the nation's biggest mutual fund companies, including Vanguard Group, Putnam Investments and Oppenheimer Management Corp., are reporting stronger sales in December than in November, and expectations are that sales will remain strong in January. Other companies, including Fidelity Investments and T. Rowe Price Associates Inc., reported a slight slowdown in fund sales.

Marriage Rights: If Assembly Bill 3130 becomes law, California brides and grooms will be hearing "congratulations," "best wishes" and "here are your rights under law." Assemblywoman Diane Martinez (D-Alhambra) says that because too many couples go into marriage with only a vague idea of what it all means, she has proposed a marriage brochure to be distributed by county clerks to all couples applying for a marriage license, starting June 1, 1995.

Investors in tax-free municipal bond funds have a lot to be thankful for this year. Interest rates have dropped in 1991, pushing up the values of all bond investments, including tax-free funds. And despite the weak economy, the vast majority of cities, states and local governments haven't fallen over the edge financially.

Two insurance companies have introduced products that pay stock market returns but with no risk to principal, reviving an idea that has been tried with limited success in the mutual fund business. The products are "equity-indexed" fixed annuities, not mutual funds. In fact, they aren't defined as securities, but rather as insurance policies.