Howard Industries, Inc. 401(k) Review & Grade
Howard Industries, Inc. 401(k) Bargaining Employees Retirement Savings Plan
Laurel, MSManufacturing1,054 active participantsPlan year 2024
Estimate from the plan's Form 5500 filing · How we grade
$166Employer $ per active participant
$816Employee $ saved per active participant
0.23%Direct admin cost, % of plan assets
$8.9MNet plan assets, end of year
–Average balance per account (account count looks misreported)
Score breakdown
- Employer generosity1.4 / 503th percentile for employer $ per participant
- Low cost12.5 / 2550th percentile for low admin cost vs. same-size plans
- Employee saving0.4 / 152th percentile for employee $ per participant
- Plan features3 / 10Default investment
Total score17 / 100 · Grade F
This plan vs. peers
Peers: Manufacturing plans with 500–2,499 active participants (2,376 plans).
| Measure | Percentile |
|---|---|
| Employer $ per participant | 3th |
| Lower admin cost | 50th |
| Employee saving | 2th |
| Peers that auto-enroll | 59% |
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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
- Howard Industries put in about $166 per active participant, below the typical peer ($2,320). 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.
- 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.
- 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 | $175,134 |
| Participant (employee) contributions | $860,617 |
| Other contributions (incl. rollovers in) | $0 |
| Administrative expenses paid from the plan | $19,843 |
| Other admin expenses | $18,777 |
| Benefits paid out | $1,513,723 |
| Net assets, start / end of year | $8.5M / $8.9M |
| Active participants, start / end of year | 1,395 / 714 |
| Participants with account balances | 524 |
| Auto-enrollment (feature code 2S) | Not reported |
| Auditor | Bdo USA |
Largest service providers (Schedule C)
| Fidelity Investments Institutional | $1,066 reported compensation |
| Regions Bank | $0 reported compensation |
Source: DOL EFAST2 Form 5500 filing, acknowledgment ID 20260413150802NAL0010458371001, received 2026-04-13, EIN 64-0466143, plan #004, plan year 2024-07-01 to 2025-06-30. Verify at efast.dol.gov.