The average 401(k) balance recovered some ground last month.
In April, estimates based on the actual contribution records and investment choices of several million consistent participants in the EBRI/ICI database indicated that the average 401(k) account balance for younger (25-34), less tenured (1-4 years) workers rose 0.4% in April, reversing March’s decline (at least those who had an account balance at the end of 2015).
Older (age 55-64) workers with more than 20 years of tenure also regained ground – rising the same 1.1% that that group lost in March, according to estimates by the nonpartisan Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI).
Thanks to robust gains in January, for the first quarter of 2018, younger (25-34), less tenured (1-4 years) workers closed 3.0% higher. On the other hand, the older (age 55-64), more tenured cohort (more than 20 years), who tend to have larger account balances and are generally more influenced by market moves, ended the quarter 0.8% lower than it began the year.
The EBRI/ICI database includes demographic, contribution, asset allocation and loan and withdrawal activity information for millions of participants. EBRI has produced estimates of the cumulative changes in average account balances – both as a result of contributions and investment returns – for several combinations of participant age and tenure.
