Viasat, Inc. 401(k) Review & Grade
Viasat, Inc. 401(k) Profit Sharing Plan
Carlsbad, CAManufacturing4,282 active participantsPlan year 2024✓ Auto-enroll
Estimate from the plan's Form 5500 filing · How we grade
$6,495Employer $ per active participant
$15,704Employee $ saved per active participant
0.09%Direct admin cost, % of plan assets
$1.2BNet plan assets, end of year
$196,998Average balance per account
Score breakdown
- Employer generosity40.2 / 5080th percentile for employer $ per participant
- Low cost15.5 / 2562th percentile for low admin cost vs. same-size plans
- Employee saving14.5 / 1597th percentile for employee $ per participant
- Plan features10 / 10Auto-enrollment, Default investment
- Red-flag deductions-3 pts1 issue reported on the filing
Total score77 / 100 · Grade A
This plan vs. peers
Peers: Manufacturing plans with 2,500–9,999 active participants (566 plans).
| Measure | Percentile |
|---|---|
| Employer $ per participant | 80th |
| Lower admin cost | 62th |
| Employee saving | 97th |
| Peers that auto-enroll | 70% |
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
Corrective distributions: the plan refunded $26,910 in contributions, which usually means it failed annual nondiscrimination testing.
What to do if you're in this plan
- Viasat put in about $6,495 per active participant, more than the typical peer ($3,452). 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 | $27,806,355 |
| Participant (employee) contributions | $67,235,140 |
| Other contributions (incl. rollovers in) | $3,738,728 |
| Administrative expenses paid from the plan | $1,008,575 |
| Investment advisory & management fees | $745,899 |
| Other admin expenses | $1,375 |
| Benefits paid out | $137,406,186 |
| Net assets, start / end of year | $1.2B / $1.2B |
| Active participants, start / end of year | 4,405 / 4,158 |
| Participants with account balances | 5,933 |
| Auto-enrollment (feature code 2S) | Yes |
| Auditor | KBF Cpas-Audit LLP |
| Employer stock held by plan | $32,187,114 |
Largest service providers (Schedule C)
| Empower Advisory Group, LLC | $685,899 reported compensation |
| Empower Annuity Insurance Company | $261,301 reported compensation |
| Rpa Financial LLC | $60,000 reported compensation |
Source: DOL EFAST2 Form 5500 filing, acknowledgment ID 20251010101114NAL0017613986001, received 2025-10-10, EIN 33-0174996, plan #001, plan year 2024-04-01 to 2025-03-31. Verify at efast.dol.gov.