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Source document· March 26, 2026

7 Signs Your 401(k) Is Quietly Underperforming

View original at finance.yahoo.com
7 Signs Your 401(k) Is Quietly Underperforming Quick Read iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV) charges an expense ratio of 0.03%, the benchmark for low-cost index investing, while many 401(k) plans offer index-style funds charging over 0.5%—a gap that compounds into six-figure losses on a $500,000 balance over 20 years…
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  • A $100,000 investment at a 7% gross annual return can grow substantially over 20 years at near-zero fees, while a 1% expense ratio meaningfully reduces that outcome

    60% confidence
  • Actively managed funds charge more and, over long periods, most underperform their benchmark indexes after fees

    60% confidence
  • Staying in a low-yielding default option while equity markets compound is one of the most expensive passive decisions a retirement saver can make

    60% confidence
  • Most 401(k) account holders unknowingly lose wealth through structural problems like excessive fees, concentrated employer stock positions above 10%, drift from target allocations, and failure to rebalance—costing participants tens of thousands in foregone compounding

    60% confidence
  • Many 401(k) plans offer index-style funds charging over 0.5%, a gap that compounds into six-figure losses on a $500,000 balance over 20 years compared to iShares Core S&P 500 ETF's 0.03% expense ratio

    60% confidence
  • Target-date funds from high-fee providers charge 0.6% to 0.8% annually compared to under 0.15% for low-cost alternatives

    60% confidence

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Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System · federal funds rate3.75 percent
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Enterprise finance software vendors—BlackLine, OneStream, Numero AI, and Oracle—are racing to embed autonomous AI agents into core financial operations (close, consolidation, reporting), backed by consolidation M&A (Numero-Royu, BlackLine-WiseLayer), fresh leadership hires, and survey data showing nearly a quarter of CFOs plan to boost AI spending over 50%. Adoption momentum is strong even as at least one bellwether (Oracle) sees its stock lag year-to-date, suggesting the market hasn't yet fully priced in the shift from AI-as-feature to AI-as-agent in finance.
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Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC
Two significantly different EPS values (10.21 vs 2.68 USD_per_share) are reported for Morgan Stanley on the same observation date (2025-12-31). Fact A specifies FY 2025, while Fact B's 'N/A' fiscal period is ambiguous. If both represent FY 2025 annual EPS, these values directly conflict. The magnitude of the difference (3.8x) is too large to attribute to rounding or minor calculation variations. The missing fiscal period in Fact B raises data quality concerns, but same-date observation + same attribute should reference the same period.
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