Eli Lilly and Company 401(k) Review & Grade
The Lilly Employee 401(k) Plan
Indianapolis, INManufacturing20,890 active participantsPlan year 2024✓ Auto-enroll
Estimate from the plan's Form 5500 filing · How we grade
$8,275Employer $ per active participant
$15,290Employee $ saved per active participant
0.02%Direct admin cost, % of plan assets
$13.0BNet plan assets, end of year
$418,967Average balance per account
Score breakdown
- Employer generosity37.3 / 5075th percentile for employer $ per participant
- Low cost23.4 / 2594th percentile for low admin cost vs. same-size plans
- Employee saving12.7 / 1585th percentile for employee $ per participant
- Plan features10 / 10Auto-enrollment, Default investment
Total score83 / 100 · Grade A
This plan vs. peers
Peers: Manufacturing plans with 10,000+ active participants (151 plans).
| Measure | Percentile |
|---|---|
| Employer $ per participant | 75th |
| Lower admin cost | 94th |
| Employee saving | 85th |
| Peers that auto-enroll | 69% |
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
- Eli Lilly and put in about $8,275 per active participant, more than the typical peer ($5,480). 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.
- Fund expense ratios aren't in the filing. Look them up in your 404(a)(5) fee disclosure and favor low-cost index or target-date funds.
- 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 | $172,858,045 |
| Participant (employee) contributions | $319,413,633 |
| Other contributions (incl. rollovers in) | $65,091,632 |
| Administrative expenses paid from the plan | $1,856,531 |
| Other admin expenses | $166,705 |
| Benefits paid out | $779,797,114 |
| Net assets, start / end of year | $11.1B / $13.0B |
| Active participants, start / end of year | 19,977 / 21,803 |
| Participants with account balances | 31,120 |
| Auto-enrollment (feature code 2S) | Yes |
| Auditor | Ernst & Young LLP |
Largest service providers (Schedule C)
| Alight Solutions, LLC | $1,140,660 reported compensation |
| Eli Lilly and Company | $453,120 reported compensation |
| Pershing LLC | $353,037 reported compensation |
Source: DOL EFAST2 Form 5500 filing, acknowledgment ID 20251009064245NAL0003384659001, received 2025-10-09, EIN 35-0470950, plan #002, plan year 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31. Verify at efast.dol.gov.
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