401(k) Investors Light on Trading in May
A mere 0.018% of balances were traded daily, according to the Alight Solutions 401(k) Index.
May was the lightest month of trading activity among 401(k) investors in 2020, according to the Alight Solutions 401(k) Index. On average, a mere 0.018% of balances were traded daily, down from 0.023% in April and 0.078% in March. Throughout the month of May, 401(k) participants traded 0.11% of their balances. Year-to-date, they have traded 1.72%. There were no above-normal trading days.
401(k) investors continued to favor fixed income, with those trades dominating 13, or 65% of the total trading days in the month, and equities leading for seven days, or 35%.
Asset classes with the most trading inflows in May were bond funds, taking in 31% of the inflows, valued at $73 million, followed by international equity funds (23%; $53 million) and money market funds (19%; $44 million).
Asset classes with the most trading outflows in May were target-date funds (TDFs) (48%; $113 million) and large U.S. equity funds (28%; $65 million).
Asset classes with the largest percentage of total balances at the end of May were TDFs (29%; $61.6 billion), large U.S. equity funds (25%; $53.5 billion) and stable value funds (11%; $22.6 billion).
Asset classes with the most contributions in May were TDFs (46%; $513 million), large U.S. equity funds (21%; $230 million) and international equity funds (7%; $76 million).
During the month, small U.S. equities rose 6.5%. Large U.S. equities rose 4.8%, international equities were up 3.3% and U.S. bonds were up by 0.5%.