Amgen Inc. 401(k) Review & Grade
Amgen Retirement and Savings Plan
Thousand Oaks, CAManufacturing13,660 active participantsPlan year 2024✓ Auto-enroll
Estimate from the plan's Form 5500 filing · How we grade
$19,620Employer $ per active participant
$17,363Employee $ saved per active participant
0.13%Direct admin cost, % of plan assets
$7.7BNet plan assets, end of year
$341,784Average balance per account
Score breakdown
- Employer generosity49.3 / 5099th percentile for employer $ per participant
- Low cost8.0 / 2532th percentile for low admin cost vs. same-size plans
- Employee saving13.4 / 1589th percentile for employee $ per participant
- Plan features10 / 10Auto-enrollment, Default investment
Total score81 / 100 · Grade A
This plan vs. peers
Peers: Manufacturing plans with 10,000+ active participants (151 plans).
| Measure | Percentile |
|---|---|
| Employer $ per participant | 99th |
| Lower admin cost | 32th |
| Employee saving | 89th |
| Peers that auto-enroll | 69% |
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
No red flags were reported on this filing's compliance questions.
What to do if you're in this plan
- Amgen put in about $19,620 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.
- Direct plan expenses (0.13% of assets) are well above similar-size plans (0.09%). 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.
- 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 | $268,014,992 |
| Participant (employee) contributions | $237,183,261 |
| Other contributions (incl. rollovers in) | $116,347,764 |
| Administrative expenses paid from the plan | $9,761,225 |
| Investment advisory & management fees | $7,903,793 |
| Benefits paid out | $536,251,834 |
| Net assets, start / end of year | $6.9B / $7.7B |
| Active participants, start / end of year | 12,355 / 14,965 |
| Participants with account balances | 22,574 |
| Auto-enrollment (feature code 2S) | Yes |
| Auditor | Ernst & Young |
| Employer stock held by plan | $344,055,715 |
Largest service providers (Schedule C)
| Merrill Lynch Pierce Fenner & Smith | $5,341,609 reported compensation |
| Sustainable Growth Advisers, LP | $976,987 reported compensation |
| Arrowmark Partners | $953,956 reported compensation |
Source: DOL EFAST2 Form 5500 filing, acknowledgment ID 20251009163950NAL0007320609001, received 2025-10-09, EIN 95-3540776, plan #001, plan year 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31. Verify at efast.dol.gov.