Target-date fund performances hit highs and lows in 2008

“Since target-date funds invest in a slew of asset classes and have a moving asset allocation, it hasn’t been clear how companies should benchmark their performance. As a result, many companies were just measuring the performance of the underlying funds that make up their target-date funds against their appropriate benchmarks. But now, with so many target-date fund indexes in development, plan sponsors are wondering how to choose which one is best for them,” writes Jessica Marquez for Workforce Management.

Below are target-date mutual funds with 2010 retirement targets that posted the smallest and largest losses in 2008, and 2008 losses of the largest 2010 funds, ranked by assets (from the Associated Press and Morningstar):

TOP FIVE PERFORMERS:
Fund Name Ticker 2008 loss
DWS Target 2010 KRFAX -3.6 percent
NestEgg Dow Jones 2010 NECSX -9.1 percent
Wells Fargo Advantage DJ 2010 STNRX -11.2 percent
MFS Lifetime 2010 MFSAX -14.3 percent
Barclays Global Investors LP 2010 STLBX -17 percent
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WORST FIVE PERFORMERS:
Fund Name Ticker 2008 loss
Oppenheimer Transition 2010 OTTAX -41.3 percent
AllianceBernstein 2010 Retirement Strategy LTDAX -32.9 percent
Goldman Sachs Retirement Strategies 2010 GRCAX -30.8 percent
Principal LifeTime 2010 Inst PTTIX -30.3 percent
JHancock2 Lifecycle 2010 JLAAX -29.8 percent
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PERFORMANCE OF FIVE LARGEST 2010 FUNDS, RANKED BY ASSETS:
Fund Name Ticker 2008 loss
Fidelity Freedom 2010 FFFCX -25.3 percent
T. Rowe Price Retirement 2010 TRRAX -26.7 percent
Vanguard Target Retirement 2010 VTENX -20.7 percent
Principal LifeTime 2010 Inst PTTIX -30.3 percent
Fidelity Advisor Freedom 2010 A FACFX -26.6 percent