More than half of the nation's underperforming 401(k)s can be found in the South, according to a ranking of the 10 worst states for 401(k)s by Judy Diamond Associates.
The examination also found that two of the states on the list are among the most populous, with lots of employers sponsoring lots of plans.
Arizona again claims the dubious distinction of finishing first, a repeat performance from last year. Slightly more than 16 percent of the 401(k)s plans in Arizona "significantly" underperformed an average benchmark, though the Grand Canyon State did see the largest year-over-year improvement. In 2014, 17.6 percent of plans in Arizona were identified as significant underperformers.
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To produce its ranking, Judy Diamond, owned by the same parent company as BenefitsPro.com, combed through more than 540,000 plans, gauging metrics such as investment return, plan design and plan management.
What follows is a closer look at the top 10 states with the greatest concentration of troubled plans, where they ranked last year, and the number of troubled plans in each state relative to the number of plans sponsored.
1. Arizona (1) 16.7 percent
1,331 low-performing plans out of 8,231
2. Nevada (2) 15.19 percent
464 low-performing plans out of 3,054
3. Utah (3) 15.17 percent
647 low-performing plans out of 4,264
4. Florida (4) 14.42 percent
3,730 low-performing plans out of 25,873
5. Tennessee (7) 13.37 percent
1,071 low-performing plans out of 8,013
6. South Carolina (10) 13.18 percent
709 low-performing plans out of 5,381
7. Georgia (6) 13.12 percent
1,754 low-performing plans out of 13,369
Photo: The South Carolina capitol building in Columbia.
8. Texas (5) 13.11 percent
4,173 low-performing plans out of 31,839
9. Mississippi (16) 12.88 percent
335 low-performing plans out of 2,600
10. Alabama (13) 12.81 percent
762 low-performing plans out of 5,950
Photo: Alabama's capitol building in Montgomery.
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Nick Thornton
Nick Thornton is a financial writer covering retirement and health care issues for BenefitsPRO and ALM Media. He greatly enjoys learning from the vast minds in the legal, academic, advisory and money management communities when covering the retirement space. He's also written on international marketing trends, financial institution risk management, defense and energy issues, the restaurant industry in New York City, surfing, cigars, rum, travel, and fishing. When not writing, he's pushing into some land or water.
