I found a few solutions like removedOnCompleteion = YES and fill mode = kCAFillModesForwards
Those are not solutions.
CGPoint newLoc = pointerLayer.position;
That won't do any good; adding an animation does not actually change the position. The animation happens later.
I'm not entirely sure what you're after, but it might help you to read my explanation of Core Animation. Animation is just an illusion; it's a game played with the "presentation layer". It is up to you to move the real layer to where it is going to be after the animation and to add the animation that will appear to make it move there.
I provide a formulaic approach for making sure that your Core Animation works to get you where you want to go:
http://www.apeth.com/iOSBook/ch17.html#_using_a_cabasicanimation