American Electric Power Service Corporation 401(k) Review & Grade
Aep Retirement Savings 401(k) Plan
Columbus, OHUtilities16,938 active participantsPlan year 2024✓ Auto-enroll
Estimate from the plan's Form 5500 filing · How we grade
$4,799Employer $ per active participant
$10,998Employee $ saved per active participant
0.13%Direct admin cost, % of plan assets
$5.2BNet plan assets, end of year
$247,713Average balance per account
Score breakdown
- Employer generosity37.0 / 5074th percentile for employer $ per participant
- Low cost7.9 / 2532th percentile for low admin cost vs. same-size plans
- Employee saving12.6 / 1584th percentile for employee $ per participant
- Plan features10 / 10Auto-enrollment, Default investment
Total score68 / 100 · Grade B
This plan vs. peers
Peers: all industries, plans with 10,000+ active participants (fewer than 30 industry peers) (820 plans).
| Measure | Percentile |
|---|---|
| Employer $ per participant | 74th |
| Lower admin cost | 32th |
| Employee saving | 84th |
| Peers that auto-enroll | 50% |
Get the monthly 401(k) report card
The best and worst plans, new grades as filings post. One email a month, no spam.
Red flags from the filing
No red flags were reported on this filing's compliance questions.
What to do if you're in this plan
- American Electric Power Service put in about $4,799 per active participant, more than the typical peer ($2,229). Contribute at least enough to collect the full match. Skipping it leaves part of your pay on the table.
- 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 (0.13% 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.
- The plan auto-enrolls employees. Check your default contribution rate. Defaults are often lower than what it takes to get the full match.
- 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 | $81,284,557 |
| Participant (employee) contributions | $186,285,552 |
| Other contributions (incl. rollovers in) | $14,047,511 |
| Administrative expenses paid from the plan | $6,963,194 |
| Contract administrator fees | $12,540 |
| Investment advisory & management fees | $6,251,528 |
| Benefits paid out | $900,385,835 |
| Net assets, start / end of year | $5.2B / $5.2B |
| Active participants, start / end of year | 17,531 / 16,345 |
| Participants with account balances | 21,069 |
| Auto-enrollment (feature code 2S) | Yes |
| Auditor | Bdo USA, P.C. |
| Employer stock held by plan | $254,007,692 |
Largest service providers (Schedule C)
| Mellon Capital | $1,370,663 reported compensation |
| J.P. Morgan Investment Management | $1,263,161 reported compensation |
| Jennison Associates, LLC | $662,133 reported compensation |
Source: DOL EFAST2 Form 5500 filing, acknowledgment ID 20251013120611NAL0002786642001, received 2025-10-13, EIN 13-4922641, plan #002, plan year 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31. Verify at efast.dol.gov.