Hodge Company 401(k) Review & Grade
Hodge Company Employee Retirement Savings Plan
Dubuque, IATransportation & Warehousing824 active participantsPlan year 2024
Estimate from the plan's Form 5500 filing · How we grade
$501Employer $ per active participant
$1,650Employee $ saved per active participant
0.58%Direct admin cost, % of plan assets
$24.5MNet plan assets, end of year
$50,739Average balance per account
Score breakdown
- Employer generosity13.9 / 5028th percentile for employer $ per participant
- Low cost4.7 / 2519th percentile for low admin cost vs. same-size plans
- Employee saving3.8 / 1525th percentile for employee $ per participant
- Plan features3 / 10Default investment
Total score25 / 100 · Grade F
This plan vs. peers
Peers: Transportation & Warehousing plans with 500–2,499 active participants (392 plans).
| Measure | Percentile |
|---|---|
| Employer $ per participant | 28th |
| Lower admin cost | 19th |
| Employee saving | 25th |
| Peers that auto-enroll | 37% |
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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
- Hodge put in about $501 per active participant, below the typical peer ($1,070). 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 (0.58% 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 | $413,390 |
| Participant (employee) contributions | $1,360,541 |
| Other contributions (incl. rollovers in) | $372,140 |
| Administrative expenses paid from the plan | $130,534 |
| Contract administrator fees | $18,839 |
| Investment advisory & management fees | $44,557 |
| Other admin expenses | $17,746 |
| Benefits paid out | $1,558,475 |
| Net assets, start / end of year | $20.9M / $24.5M |
| Active participants, start / end of year | 899 / 750 |
| Participants with account balances | 483 |
| Auto-enrollment (feature code 2S) | Not reported |
| Auditor | Eide Bailly LLP |
Largest service providers (Schedule C)
| July Business Services | $68,222 reported compensation |
| Dubuque Bank & Trust Company | $44,557 reported compensation |
Source: DOL EFAST2 Form 5500 filing, acknowledgment ID 20251012150231NAL0000139427001, received 2025-10-12, EIN 42-0845793, plan #002, plan year 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31. Verify at efast.dol.gov.