A more personalized approach
A more personalized approach
“Investment risk” refers to how comfortable you are not knowing how your investments will perform against your expectations. Usually, taking on more risk—or uncertainty—means you also have potential for larger returns on your investment. Taking on less risk means you’re focused on preserving the money you have, rather than emphasizing growth.
Target-date funds provide a way to hold a diversified investment portfolio that rebalances over time to become less focused on potential growth and more focused on producing income. For example, if the target date is a long time from now, the target-date fund initially will be more heavily weighted toward stock investments—that is, more focused on growth. As the target date approaches, the investment mix becomes weighted more heavily toward fixed-income or cash equivalent investments, including bonds and Treasury securities, which aim for capital preservation and/or income. A target date fund’s gradual shift to more conservative investments is called the "glide path." A target date fund is typically designed to be used as a stand-alone investment strategy. Source: “How Target Date Funds Work”, FINRA
Target date funds are useful and popular tools for investing for retirement. Without requiring any investment expertise on the part of you, the retirement saver, they can help you invest confidently and, with adequate contributions on a regular basis, be in a position to retire at the time of your choosing.
Traditionally, target date funds take just one factor into consideration: a person's age. But age is just a number, and individuals are so much more than that. For example, a 40-year-old who is single, just started a new job, and started saving later in her career has very different needs and goals from a 40-year-old with a house and three children approaching college age.
In order to align more closely with investors’ differing needs, Stadion TargetFit offers three different target date strategies: Stadion TargetFit Conservative, TargetFit Moderate, and TargetFit Growth.
In a target date fund, the mix of assets (i.e. stocks, bonds, cash and equivalents) in your retirement account changes as you get closer to retirement.
For example, when you’re younger, you might be more heavily invested in stocks and less in bonds, whereas when you’re older, you might choose to be more heavily invested in bonds and less in stocks. A “glide path” represents how the mix of stocks and bonds changes over time.
Most target date funds offer just one glide path to all participants. Stadion TargetFit offers three distinct target date fund glide paths that are designed to align with a participant’s risk profile, as well as his or her expected time to retirement.
Here are examples of what a conservative, moderate, and growth glide path might look like. Keep in mind that all glide paths are based on two main types of assets: stocks (higher risk) versus bonds and/or cash equivalents (lower risk). What changes is how they’re balanced.
1. Implied age assumes a retirement age of 67.
Percentage of bonds and/or cash equivalents is the difference between 100% and percentage of equity. Each TargetFit glide path line represents the midpoint between the maximum and minimum equity exposure. Actual equity and bonds and/or cash equivalents allocations are expected to be different from the graphic shown. The graphic does not presume any investment performance or result. Investments are subject to risk and may lose value
Stadion TargetFit is designed to offer participants multiple options based on age and investment risk tolerance. Here are hypothetical profiles of a conservative, moderate and growth investor. Note that they are not based on you or any actual investor. After considering your investment risk tolerance, look at the allocation within each TargetFit Series to see if it’s right for you. Don’t make your decision based on these general descriptions; make sure it fits your personal concerns and goals.*
Click on the risk tolerance description that you believe fits you best.
Is cautious about their savings.
Prefers to live on the “safe side” with their investment choices.
Would rather sleep at night knowing their money is invested in low-risk assets than take chances to get greater returns.
Believes they are more cautious with investing money than other people they know.
Doesn’t mind taking some risks with their savings.
Prefers a balance for their approach to investing for retirement.
Believes they are not more cautious or more aggressive with investing money than other people they know.
Doesn’t mind taking risks with their money to increase the amount they have.
Focuses on the upside even if some risk is involved.
Isn't fearful when their investments fluctuate in value.
Believes they are more aggressive with investing money than other people they know.
This website is intended for use solely by retirement plan sponsors and participants, their consultants, and advisors. This website is not intended for use by the general public or to provide investment advice or recommendations, nor is it an offer or solicitation to the general public to buy or sell any investment products. Collective trust funds are not available to the general public, but rather only to qualified retirement plans which meet eligibility requirements. Materials on this site are intended for educational purposes only.
The Stadion TargetFit Strategies Collective Investment Trust Series are funds that are Collective Investment Trusts (CITs) created by Benefit Trust Company and administered by Benefit Trust Company, as trustee. Its shares are not deposits of Benefit Trust Company and are not insured by the FDIC or any other agency. The CITs are not mutual funds. The CITs are securities which have not been registered under the Securities Act of 1933 and are exempt from investment company registration under the Investment Company Act of 1940. Stadion Money Management, LLC is the sub-advisor to the TargetFit Strategies Collective Investment Trusts.
*Source: "The Risks of a No-Risk Portfolio," FINRA Investor Education Foundation. https://www.investor.gov/research-before-you-invest/research/assessing-your-risk-tolerance
Use the dropdown box below to log in to your retirement plan provider’s website and select the appropriate TargetFit strategy. If you have any questions or cannot locate your provider, please contact your company’s retirement plan advisor.
