RESEARCH |

2020
PLANADVISER Retirement Plan Adviser Survey

Reported by PLANADVISER | Art by Vikki Zhang
Survey Data
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Survey Data

Retirement Plan Adviser Preferences

Top 10 Criteria Used in Selecting Core Fund Lineups
1. Performance vs. benchmarks79%
2. Total performance (5-yr return)47%
3. Fee structure for plan42%
4. Alpha, beta and std deviations41%
5. Upside/Downside capture ratio38%
6. Management philosophy36%
7. Third-party scoring of funds34%
8. Manager tenure28%
8. Sharpe ratio24%
10. Total performance (10-yr return)22%
Top 10 Criteria Used in Selecting Plan Recordkeeper
1. Value for price53%
2. Quality of sponsor support39%
3. Fee structure for plan38%
4. Knowledge of service teams28%
5. Website tools for participants27%
6. Flexibility and customization26%
7. Investment options available19%
8. Quality of participant education15%
9. Cybersecurity policies11%
9. Payroll integration options11%
Top 10 Standalone Funds
% Top Choice % Top 5
1. Fidelity® 500 Index Fund21%36%
2. Vanguard 500 Index Fund13%23%
3. T. Rowe Price Blue Chip Growth Fund7%22%
4. American Funds Euro Pacific Growth3%14%
5. PGIM Total Return Bond Fund3%13%
6. MFS® International Diversification Fund2%11%
7. American Balanced Fund2%10%
7. Western Asset Core Plus Bond Fund2%10%
9. JPMorgan Large Cap Growth Fund2%9%
9. PIMCO Income Fund2%9%
Top 10 Fund Families
1. Capital Group, home of American Funds65%
2. The Vanguard Group, Inc.60%
3. Fidelity Investments54%
4. T. Rowe Price50%
5. J.P. Morgan Asset Management37%
6. BlackRock34%
7. MFS Investment Management32%
8. PIMCO22%
9. American Century14%
10. Franklin Templeton / Legg Mason12%

Top-Rated Investment Firms

Top 5 TDF Families
1. American Funds TDF Series62%
2. Vanguard Retirement Funds58%
3. T. Rowe Price Retirement Funds42%
4. Fidelity Freedom Funds28%
5. BlackRock LifePath® Funds22%
General Adviser Services and Support
1. Capital Group, home of American Funds33 votes
1. J.P. Morgan Asset Management33 votes
3. Fidelity Investments31 votes
4. BlackRock24 votes
5. Franklin Templeton12 votes
5. The Vanguard Group, Inc.12 votes
7. Columbia Threadneedle11 votes
7. MFS Investment Management11 votes
9. American Century9 votes
9. T. Rowe Price9 votes
Retirement Industry Insight and Analysis
1. J.P. Morgan Asset Management57 votes
2. Fidelity Investments49 votes
3. BlackRock17 votes
4. Capital Group, home of American Funds14 votes
5. T. Rowe Price13 votes
6. Columbia Threadneedle8 votes
6. Goldman Sachs8 votes
6. Janus Henderson8 votes
6. The Vanguard Group, Inc.8 votes
10. Invesco7 votes
Investment Value for Price
1. The Vanguard Group, Inc.77 votes
2. Capital Group, home of American Funds60 votes
3. Fidelity Investments27 votes
4. BlackRock20 votes
5. TIAA / Nuveen8 votes
6. J.P. Morgan Asset Management6 votes
7. Charles Schwab4 votes
7. Dimensional (DFA)4 votes
7. T. Rowe Price4 votes
10. MFS Investment Management and PGIM (tied)3 votes
Wholesaler Knowledge and Responsiveness
1. Fidelity Investments38 votes
2. Capital Group, home of American Funds29 votes
3. J.P. Morgan Asset Management20 votes
4. BlackRock17 votes
5. PIMCO16 votes
6. MFS Investment Management14 votes
7. T. Rowe Price13 votes
8. American Century12 votes
9. Invesco10 votes
10. Franklin Templeton8 votes
Practice Management Ideas and Tools
1. Fidelity Investments23 votes
1. J.P. Morgan Asset Management23 votes
3. Capital Group, home of American Funds19 votes
3. MFS Investment Management19 votes
5. BlackRock15 votes
6. Invesco14 votes
7. Franklin Templeton13 votes
7. PIMCO13 votes
9. Columbia Threadneedle10 votes
10. John Hancock and T. Rowe Price (tied)9 votes

Top-Rated Defined Contribution Plan Providers

Reputation
1. The Vanguard Group, Inc.57 votes
2. Fidelity Investments47 votes
3. Capital Group, home of American Funds41 votes
4. BlackRock26 votes
5. T. Rowe Price16 votes
6. J.P. Morgan Asset Management15 votes
7. PIMCO5 votes
8. Charles Schwab4 votes
8. Morgan Stanley4 votes
10. TIAA / Nuveen3 votes
Overall Service, Micro Plans (<$5MM) 296 votes
1. Alliance Benefit Group27%
2. Securian Financial21%
3. CUNA Mutual Retirement Solutions20%
4. Ascensus19%
5. ADP Retirement Services18%
6. John Hancock16%
6. Voya Financial16%
8. The Standard15%
8. Newport15%
10. Principal 11%
Overall Service, Small Plans ($5MM-$50MM) 329 votes
1. Empower Retirement26%
2. Bank of America Corporation19%
3. The Standard18%
4. Principal17%
5. Fidelity Investments16%
6. Alliance Benefit Group15%
7. OneAmerica14%
8. Lincoln Financial Group13%
9. Milliman, Inc.12%
9. Securian Financial12%
Overall Service, Midsize Plans (>$50MM-$200MM) 303 votes
1. Fidelity Investments31%
2. Bank of America Corporation27%
3. Charles Schwab23%
4. Empower Retirement19%
4. Milliman, Inc.19%
6. T. Rowe Price14%
7. Principal 13%
8. Prudential Retirement12%
9. The Standard8%
10. John Hancock7%
Plan Design Flexibility and Customization 302 votes
1. Milliman, Inc.27%
2. Empower Retirement23%
3. Charles Schwab21%
3. Newport21%
5. Alliance Benefit Group19%
6. Prudential Retirement16%
7. OneAmerica13%
7. The Standard13%
9. Securian Financial12%
10. John Hancock11%
Value for Price of Recordkeeping Services 311 votes
1. Empower Retirement24%
2. Voya Financial23%
3. Alliance Benefit Group15%
3. Ascensus15%
3. T. Rowe Price15%
6. Charles Schwab13%
7. The Standard12%
7. The Vanguard Group, Inc.12%
9. Newport10%
10. Prudential Retirement9%
Regulatory / Compliance Support and Services 315 votes
1. Bank of America Corporation27%
1. Milliman, Inc.27%
3. Fidelity Investments23%
4. Charles Schwab18%
4. Empower Retirement18%
4. Securian Financial18%
7. John Hancock16%
8. OneAmerica13%
9. Principal 12%
9. The Standard12%

Tables for Top Standalone Funds and Top Fund and Target-Date Fund Families summarize rankings from advisers personally involved in evaluating and recommending investment options. Top 5 votes = Percentage of advisers selecting the fund or family as one of their five favorite managers. Top choice votes = Percentage selecting the fund or family as their favorite.Note: For additional rankings, including those for Large (>$200MM – $1B) and Mega (>$1B) plans, please visit plansponsor.com/research.