target date funds Archives

Millions of Americans, it turns out, are making the right investing moves, according to studies

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Low-cost target date funds in retirement plans require minimal effort from savers but can substantially enhance retirement wealth, according to Prof. Olivia S. Mitchell of Wharton and Stephen P. Utkus of Vanguard, in a study discussed by Howard R. Gold of MarketWatch.…Read More

Pure target-date fund investors see significantly more gains

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Target-date funds in 401(k) plans can provide better returns, according to a new study by Wharton Prof. Olivia S. Mitchell and Stephen P. Utkus of Vanguard, cited in Pensions & Investments.…Read More

This one change can improve your retirement wealth by 50%

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Mark Hulbert of MarketWatch cites new work by Wharton’s Prof. Olivia S. Mitchell & Stephen P. Utkus of Vanguard, showing that using target-date funds as 401(k) plan defaults makes participants far more likely to invest in them. …Read More

Target Date Funds a Game-Changer for Plan Member Outcomes

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Target date funds are game-changers for retirement plan member outcomes: Higher returns with lower risk, for minimal effort. Canadian Investment Review cites recent study by Prof. Olivia S. Mitchell of Wharton and Stephen P. Utkus of Vanguard.…Read More

Research Shows Positive Effects of TDFs

A couple is in a kitchen, smiling and preparing food together. One person washes a bell pepper while the other is chopping vegetables. The setting is casual and domestic.

Target date funds can pay retirement savers higher returns with lower risk, report Wharton Prof. Olivia S. Mitchell and Stephen P. Utkus of Vanguard in their new study. Including them as defaults on plan menus can boost retirement wealth by half, over a 30-year horizon cited by Plansponsor.…Read More

Target Date Funds: The Good, the Bad, and the Unknown

Target Date Funds, which automatically diversify, adjust and rebalance retirement saving allocations over very long periods of time, are among the most successful individual investing products of the past decade. Initially introduced in 1994, target date funds (TDFs) really took off after the U.S. Pension Protection Act of 2006 allowed defined contribution (DC) pension plans to use them as a default option for plan participants. Assets in TDFs rose from a total of $100 billion in assets in 2005 to over $700 billion in 2015, and more than 60% of new DC pension contributions are now flowing into these funds. At least 36 mutual fund companies offer TDFs to pension plans, and a growing part of the pension consulting business consists of helping pension plan sponsors to “customize” their TDFs.…Read More