Ac&a Enterprises, LLC 401(k) Review & Grade
Applied Composites Retirement Plan
Lake Forest, CAManufacturing820 active participantsPlan year 2024
Estimate from the plan's Form 5500 filing · How we grade
$1,890Employer $ per active participant
$4,226Employee $ saved per active participant
0.59%Direct admin cost, % of plan assets
$40.0MNet plan assets, end of year
$58,503Average balance per account
Score breakdown
- Employer generosity20.3 / 5041th percentile for employer $ per participant
- Low cost4.5 / 2518th percentile for low admin cost vs. same-size plans
- Employee saving6.0 / 1540th percentile for employee $ per participant
- Plan features3 / 10Default investment
- Red-flag deductions-3 pts1 issue reported on the filing
Total score31 / 100 · Grade D
This plan vs. peers
Peers: Manufacturing plans with 500–2,499 active participants (2,376 plans).
| Measure | Percentile |
|---|---|
| Employer $ per participant | 41th |
| Lower admin cost | 18th |
| Employee saving | 40th |
| Peers that auto-enroll | 59% |
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Red flags from the filing
Corrective distributions: the plan refunded $14,344 in contributions, which usually means it failed annual nondiscrimination testing.
What to do if you're in this plan
- Ac&a Enterprises put in about $1,890 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.
- Direct plan expenses (0.59% of assets) are well above similar-size plans (0.23%). 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.
- 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 | $1,551,106 |
| Participant (employee) contributions | $3,467,170 |
| Other contributions (incl. rollovers in) | $1,651,552 |
| Administrative expenses paid from the plan | $218,474 |
| Contract administrator fees | $155,274 |
| Investment advisory & management fees | $63,200 |
| Benefits paid out | $4,893,147 |
| Net assets, start / end of year | $33.8M / $40.0M |
| Active participants, start / end of year | 855 / 786 |
| Participants with account balances | 683 |
| Auto-enrollment (feature code 2S) | Not reported |
| Auditor | Baroldi Gundersen LLP |
Largest service providers (Schedule C)
| Lincoln National Corporation | $155,274 reported compensation |
| Creative Planning, LLC | $63,200 reported compensation |
Source: DOL EFAST2 Form 5500 filing, acknowledgment ID 20260313174634NAL0007897521001, received 2026-03-13, EIN 20-1695946, plan #001, plan year 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31. Verify at efast.dol.gov.