Trading activity was subdued in March with just two above-normal1 days, according to the Alight Solutions 401(k) Index™. Investors favored equity funds on 11 of 20 days. Bond funds (44%) and large U.S. equity funds (43%) saw the most inflows, while target date funds2 (30%), stable value funds (20%) and company stock (17%) experienced the most outflows. New contributions to equities inched up from 69.6% in February to 69.7% in March, while average asset allocation in equities increased from 71.4% to 71.7%.
March observations:
- On average, 0.008% of 401(k) balances were traded daily.
- 11 of 20 days favored equity funds.
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Inflows and outflows during the month of March:
- Trading inflows mainly went to bond, large U.S. equity and self-directed window funds.
Outflows were primarily from target date2, stable value and company stock funds.
Asset classes with most trading inflows in March | Percentage of inflows | Index dollar value ($mil) |
| Bond funds | 44% | $137 |
Large U.S. equity funds | 43% | $133 |
| Self-directed window funds | 8% | $26 |
Asset classes with most trading outflows in March | Percentage of outflows | Index dollar value ($mil) |
Target date funds2 | 30% | $94 |
Stable value funds | 20% | $61 |
| Company stock | 17% | $53 |
March investment portfolios:
- After reflecting market movements and trading activity, average asset allocation in equities increased from 71.4% in February to 71.7% in March.
- New contributions to equities increased from 69.6% in February to 69.7% in March.
Asset classes with largest percentage of total balance at the end of March | Percentage of balance | Index dollar value ($mil) |
Target date funds2 | 32% | $85,941 |
Large U.S. equity funds | 28% | $76,308 |
International equity funds | 7% | $17,866 |
Asset classes with most contributions in March | Percentage of contributions | Index dollar value($mil) |
Target date funds2 | 47% | $1088 |
Large U.S. equity funds | 22% | $515 |
International equity funds | 7% | $164 |
Returns for common indices | March | 2024 YTD |
Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Aggregate Bond Index | 0.92% | -0.78% |
S&P 500 Index | 3.22% | 10.56% |
Russell 2000 Index | 3.58% | 5.18% |
MSCI All Country World ex-U.S. Index (net) | 3.13% | 4.69% |
1 A “normal” level of relative transfer activity is when the net daily movement of participants’ balances, as a percent of total 401(k) balances within the Alight Solutions 401(k) Index™, equals between 0.3 times and 1.5 times the average daily net activity of the preceding 12 months. A “high” relative transfer activity day is when the net daily movement exceeds two times the average daily net activity. A “moderate” relative transfer activity day is when the net daily movement is between 1.5 and 2 times the average daily net activity of the preceding 12 months.
2 Target date funds also include the amounts in target risk funds. The amount in the target risk funds is less than 10% of the total.
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