As we all learned in high school, the most popular isn’t necessarily the best. Yet Kiplinger recently teamed with research and information firm BrightScope to see where plan participants are putting their money.
The personal finance magazine released a list of the top 101 funds in 401(k) plans. Not surprisingly, mutual fund giants Vanguard and Fidelity Investments fared particularly well. The former found 31 of its funds on the lists, while the latter rang in with 22.
“Overall, retirement savers who have invested in the Boston-based fund [Fidelity] giant’s most popular offerings have fared well,” Kiplinger reports. “None of the 22 Fidelity funds have been disasters, and a few have been strong performers.
The magazine notes that Americans have $4.4 trillion invested in 401(k)s (it’s actually closer to $4.6 trillion, but we won’t quibble), which is an indication of just how important these tax-advantaged vehicles are to successful retirements.
The 20 most popular top mutual funds for 2015:
- Vanguard Institutional Index (VINIX) – Large Blend
- PIMCO Total Return (PTTRX) – Total Bond Market
- Fidelity Contrafund (FCNTX) – Large-Growth U.S. Equities
- American Funds EuroPacific Growth (AEPGX) – EAFE
- Fidelity Spartan 500 Index (FUSEX) – Large Blend
- Vanguard Total Bond Market Index (VBMFX) – Total Bond Market
- Fidelity Growth Company (FDGRX) – Large-Growth U.S. Equities
- Vanguard Wellington (VWELX) – Moderate Allocation
- Dodge & Cox Stock (DODGX) – Large-Value U.S. Equities
- Vanguard 500 Index (VFINX) – Large Blend
- American Funds Growth Fund of America (AGTHX) – Large-Growth U.S. Equities
- Fidelity Freedom 2020 (FFFDX) – Moderate Allocation
- Fidelity Low-Priced Stock (FLPSX) – Mid Cap U.S. Equities
- Vanguard PRIMECAP (VPMCX) – Large-Growth U.S. Equities
- Vanguard Extended Market Index (VEXMX) – Mid-Cap U.S. Equities
- Fidelity Freedom 2030 (FFFEX) – Moderate Allocation
- Vanguard Target Retirement 2025 (VTTVX) – Moderate Allocation
- Vanguard Windsor II (VWNDX) – Large-Value U.S. Equities
- Fidelity Diversified International (FDIVX) – EAFE
- Vanguard Mid-Capitalization Index (VMCIX) – Mid Cap U.S. Equities
The full list of the top mutual funds can be found here for 2022.
See Also:
- Most Trusted 401(k) Financial Firms
- Vanguard Looks Far Into the Future With New 401(k) Target date Fund
- Winning Scores Decline, But Top Broker-Dealers Hold Spots in Advisor Satisfaction Survey
With more than 20 years serving financial markets, John Sullivan is the former editor-in-chief of Investment Advisor magazine and retirement editor of ThinkAdvisor.com. Sullivan is also the former editor of Boomer Market Advisor and Bank Advisor magazines, and has a background in the insurance and investment industries in addition to his journalism roots.
