Brightscope, which provides retirement plan ratings and investment research, released its fourth annual Top 30 401(k) plans with more than $1 billion in assets.
Brightscope puts together its ratings list by analyzing information and more than 200 data points from plan sponsors and recordkeepers, and Department of Labor and the Securities and Exchange Commission. It then uses an algorithm to calculate a single numerical value for each 401(k) plan, covering areas like total plan cost, company generosity and investment menu quality.
Mike Alfred, CEO and co-founder of BrightScope, said in a statement, "It is clear that plan sponsors are effectively using quantitative tools like the BrightScope Rating to meaningfully improve their plans. Better plans lead to better outcomes for each and every participant who depends on their plan for a dignified retirement."
Some of the key statistics and findings from the Top 30 lists, include:
- Index Funds growth continues: index funds account for 29.5% of assets in the Top 30 Plans of 2012, compared to 25.4% on the 2011 list.
- Collective Trusts are becoming more commonplace: 28.7% of the assets of the Top 30 Plans of 2012 were in Collective Trusts relative to 24.0% on the 2011 list.
- Plans within the 2012 Top 30 list average over $12,700 in salary deferrals per participant, up from $11,600 on the 2011 list.
- Some newcomers to the 2012 BrightScope Year-End Top 30 401(k) Plans List, include: The Roche Savings and Pay Deferral Plan; the Cisco Systems, Inc. 401(k) Plan; and the Altria Client Services, Inc. Deferred Profit-Sharing Plan for Salaried Employees
- The Deloitte Profit Sharing Plan makes the largest slip on this year's list, slipping 26 places from No. 4 last year to No. 30.
- The IBM 401(k) Plus Plan has the most upward movement in 2012, climbing eight spots from 22nd to 14th.
Check out the entire list of the 2012 Top 30 401(k) Plans with more than $1 billion in assets:
| 2012 Rank | 2011 Rank | Plan Name | U.S. Headquarters | BrightScope Rating™ |
| 1 | N/A | Marathon Oil Co. Thrift Plan | Houston, TX | 91.65 |
| 2 | 2 | The Savings Plan of Saudi Arabian Oil Co. | Houston, TX | 90.87 |
| 3 | 1 | Southwest Airlines Pilots' Retirement Savings Plan | Dallas, TX | 90.82 |
| 4 | 3 | Wellington Retirement and Pension Plan | Boston, MA | 90.20 |
| 5 | 6 | Amgen Retirement and Savings Plan | Thousand Oaks, CA | 89.65 |
| 6 | 5 | United Airlines Pilot Directed Account Plan | Chicago, IL | 89.17 |
| 7 | 7 | Employees Savings and Retirement Plan of Credit Suisse | New York, NY | 88.31 |
| 8 | 14 | Sanofi-Aventis US Savings Plan | Bridgewater, NJ | 87.66 |
| 9 | 9 | Southern California Permanente Medical Group Retirement Plan | Pasadena, CA | 87.64 |
| 10 | 11 | Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. Savings and Investment Program | New York, NY | 87.01 |
| 11 | 19 | Google Inc. 401k Savings Plan | Mountain View, CA | 86.99 |
| 12 | 12 | ExxonMobil Savings Plan | Houston, TX | 86.88 |
| 13 | 10 | Bayer Corp. Savings and Retirement Plan | Pittsburgh, PA | 86.82 |
| 14 | 22 | IBM 401k Plus Plan | Armonk, NY | 86.71 |
| 15 | 20 | Genentech, Inc. Tax Reduction Investment Plan | South San Francisco, CA | 86.71 |
| 2012 Rank | 2011 Rank | Plan Name | U.S. Headquarters | BrightScope Rating™ |
| 16 | 13 | Chevron Employee Savings Investment Plan | San Ramon, CA | 86.65 |
| 17 | 15 | BASF Corp. Retirement Savings Plan | Florham Park, NJ | 86.58 |
| 18 | N/A | The Roche Savings and Pay Deferral Plan | Nutley, NJ | 86.58 |
| 19 | 17 | Ernst & Young Partnership Retirement Plan | Secaucus, NJ | 86.55 |
| 20 | 18 | Anadarko Employee Savings Plan | The Woodlands, TX | 86.47 |
| 21 | N/A | Cisco Systems, Inc. 401(k) Plan | San Jose, CA | 86.35 |
| 22 | 23 | BP Employee Savings Plan | Houston, TX | 86.26 |
| 23 | 24 | Shell Provident Fund | Houston, TX | 86.06 |
| 24 | 27 | UBS Savings and Investment Plan | New York, NY | 85.85 |
| 25 | N/A | Altria Client Services, Inc. Deferred Profit-Sharing Plan for Salaried Employees | Richmond, VA | 85.81 |
| 26 | 21 | ConocoPhillips Savings Plan | Bartlesville, OK | 85.79 |
| 27 | 29 | Goldman Sachs 401k Plan | New York, NY | 85.71 |
| 28 | 16 | Bechtel Trust & Thrift Plan | San Francisco, CA | 85.70 |
| 29 | 26 | GlaxoSmithKline Retirement Savings Plan | Philadelphia, PA | 85.62 |
| 30 | 4 | Deloitte Profit Sharing Plan | New York, NY | 85.60 |
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