Advantage Sales & Marketing, LLC 401(k) Review & Grade
Advantage 401(k) Savings Plan
Clayton, MOProfessional, Scientific & Technical Services36,580 active participantsPlan year 2024
Estimate from the plan's Form 5500 filing · How we grade
$330Employer $ per active participant
$1,283Employee $ saved per active participant
0.15%Direct admin cost, % of plan assets
$764.6MNet plan assets, end of year
–Average balance per account (account count looks misreported)
Score breakdown
- Employer generosity8.7 / 5017th percentile for employer $ per participant
- Low cost6.8 / 2527th percentile for low admin cost vs. same-size plans
- Employee saving1.7 / 1512th percentile for employee $ per participant
- Plan features3 / 10Default investment
- Red-flag deductions-3 pts1 issue reported on the filing
Total score17 / 100 · Grade F
This plan vs. peers
Peers: Professional, Scientific & Technical Services plans with 10,000+ active participants (70 plans).
| Measure | Percentile |
|---|---|
| Employer $ per participant | 17th |
| Lower admin cost | 27th |
| Employee saving | 12th |
| Peers that auto-enroll | 39% |
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Red flags from the filing
Corrective distributions: the plan refunded $4,027,095 in contributions, which usually means it failed annual nondiscrimination testing.
What to do if you're in this plan
- Advantage Sales & Marketing put in about $330 per active participant, below the typical peer ($2,932). Any match is still an instant return, so contribute enough to get all of it.
- The filing shows total dollars, not the match formula. Ask HR for the Summary Plan Description so you know the exact match and vesting schedule.
- Direct plan expenses (0.15% of assets) are well above similar-size plans (0.09%). Check your annual fee disclosure, choose low-cost index funds if you can, and think about whether savings beyond the match belong in an IRA.
- Changing jobs? You can usually leave the money in the plan, move it to your new employer's plan, or roll it into an IRA. Don't cash out: you'd owe taxes and possibly a 10% penalty.
The raw numbers from the filing
| Employer contributions | $12,064,990 |
| Participant (employee) contributions | $46,918,809 |
| Other contributions (incl. rollovers in) | $10,611,144 |
| Administrative expenses paid from the plan | $1,181,236 |
| Contract administrator fees | $1,181,236 |
| Benefits paid out | $177,262,278 |
| Net assets, start / end of year | $781.2M / $764.6M |
| Active participants, start / end of year | 38,300 / 34,861 |
| Participants with account balances | 11,094 |
| Auto-enrollment (feature code 2S) | Not reported |
| Auditor | Wright Ford Young & Co. |
Largest service providers (Schedule C)
| Principal Life Insurance Company | $1,207,095 reported compensation |
| Sageview Advisory Group, LLC | $162,500 reported compensation |
| Wright Ford Young & Co. | $36,500 reported compensation |
Source: DOL EFAST2 Form 5500 filing, acknowledgment ID 20251015165630NAL0002668723001, received 2025-10-15, EIN 33-0777131, plan #001, plan year 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31. Verify at efast.dol.gov.