401(K) Plan Sponsors Expected to Favor Blend Target Date Funds, according to PIMCO Consultant Survey
Newport Beach, California (June 5, 2025) – Nearly two-thirds of institutional consultants and 80 percent of aggregators say they expect plan sponsors to increase their implementation of blend target date funds, retirement asset allocation vehicles that blend active and passive management approaches, according to the 19th Annual Defined Contribution (DC) Consulting Study conducted by PIMCO, a global leader in active fixed income with expertise across public and private markets.
Institutional consultants and aggregators also said they plan to focus more research and ratings on blend TDFs; while aggregators, in particular, intend to significantly increase their focus on personalized TDFs, advisor managed accounts (AMAs) and dual qualified default investment alternatives, vehicles that start out as traditional TDFs and then transition to a more personalized solution as workers approach retirement.
Additionally, in the next year, roughly half of the consultants surveyed and one-third of the aggregators said they expect sponsors to adopt private market investments within their asset allocation offerings, with private credit as the most likely option.
PIMCO surveyed 35 consultants and advisory firms, who serve over 27,000 clients, as part of the firm’s effort to capture the breadth of views in the industry as well as services available amid rapidly changing demographics of plan participants. Published results were based on responses from firms with more than $8.8 trillion in DC assets under management.
“We have seen the emergence of new themes in our survey as the industry continues to evolve,” said Rene Martel, Managing Director and PIMCO’s Head of Retirement. “This year, blend TDFs and private investments have joined other priorities as plan sponsors broaden their offering to address the diverse needs of their participants.”
Other survey findings:
- Incorporating Collective Investment Trusts (CITs) is the most common priority of sponsors, followed by evaluating both guaranteed and non-guaranteed retirement income strategies.
- The overall number of fund options remains steady, with two-thirds, on average, focused on active management; consultant recommendations have a stronger bias towards active management in fixed income, capital preservation, and inflation mitigation.
- DC plan offerings continue to evolve, with a shift from passive to active fixed income and from active to passive equity; there is also growing adoption of active multi-asset inflation strategies and removal of balanced funds.
- Interest in multi-sector fixed income is increasing due to its potential to help savers accumulate wealth through a broader opportunity set, sector rotation, and potential for higher yield generation, along with aiming to produce consistent income generation to support retirees.
- When evaluating tradeoffs of guaranteed income products, consultants have a strong preference for opt-in solutions that offer fee transparency, liquidity, and immediate income upon annuitization.
A summary of the survey’s key findings can be found here: PIMCO.com/dc-survey
About the Survey
In its 19th year, the PIMCO US Defined Contribution Consulting Study seeks to help consultants, advisors and plan sponsors understand the breadth of views and consulting services available within the defined contribution (DC) marketplace. Our 2025 study captures data, trends and opinions from 35 consulting and advisory firms who serve over 27,000 clients with aggregate DC assets in excess of $8.85 trillion as of the date survey responses were collected. All responses were collected from January 14 through March 10, 2025.
Disclosures
About PIMCO
PIMCO is a global leader in active fixed income with deep expertise across public and private markets. We invest our clients’ capital across a range of fixed income and credit opportunities, drawing upon our decades of experience navigating complex debt markets. Our flexible capital base and deep relationships with issuers have helped us become one of the world’s largest providers of traditional and nontraditional solutions for companies that need financing and investors who seek strong risk-adjusted returns.The survey results contain the opinions of the respondents at the time of the survey and may not reflect current opinions or investment strategies. These results may or may not match the views of PIMCO and are not intended to be reflective of PIMCO’s opinions on the market or any particular investment style or strategy. This material is distributed for informational purposes only and should not be considered as investment advice or a recommendation of any particular security, strategy or product. Information contained herein has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable, but not guaranteed.
Except for the historical information and discussions contained herein, statements contained in this news release constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements may involve a number of risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, including the performance of financial markets, the investment performance of PIMCO's sponsored investment products and separately managed accounts, general economic conditions, future acquisitions, competitive conditions and government regulations, including changes in tax laws. Readers should carefully consider such factors. Further, such forward-looking statements speak only on the date at which such statements are made. PIMCO undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of such statements.