Providers › Investment advisory and management
Service provider · Schedule C, plan year 2024
Merrill Lynch Pierce Fenner & Smith
Most often reported for investment advisory and management
Form 5500 information is as filed by the plan administrator with the Department of Labor and may be amended. Figures reflect the plan year shown, not current balances. Schedule C lists only providers a plan paid $5,000 or more, and is filed only by plans with 100 or more participants.
For plan year 2024, 2,182 retirement plans with 100 or more participants reported paying Merrill Lynch Pierce Fenner & Smith $5,000 or more. Those plans cover 5,696,399 participant records, and the service most often reported is investment advisory and management.
Reported compensation from those plans, direct and indirect, totalled $187M. Per plan, the median was $75.84 per participant, with the middle half of plans between $32.21 and $147. These are amounts plans reported paying this organisation, not a price list: they depend on which services each plan buys and on how much is paid through fund expenses instead.
Its client plans are most numerous in Florida (212), New York (200) and California (176).
In 2009 it appeared on 1,699 such filings; in 2024, 2,189 (up 29%). Yearly counts include every filing that names it, so they can run slightly above the number of plans with pages here, and name or EIN changes after mergers can break the series.
Reported compensation per plan
| Across this provider's plans | 25th percentile | Median | 75th percentile |
|---|---|---|---|
| Compensation per participant | $32.21 | $75.84 | $147 |
| Compensation as a share of plan net assets | 0.08% | 0.19% | 0.28% |
What each plan reported paying this organisation, not the plan's total cost. For reference, the median US defined contribution plan reported $123 per participant to all Schedule C providers combined.
Plans served by year
Matched by employer identification number. A merger or a change of filing entity starts a new series, so a drop to zero is not a loss of clients by itself.
By state
By plan size
Services reported
Largest plans naming this provider
| Plan | Sponsor | State | Participants | Net assets | Reported to this provider |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Walmart 401(k) Plan | Walmart Inc. | AR | 1,970,230 | $50.7B | $24.0M |
| The Kroger Co. 401(k) Retirement Savings Account Plan | The Kroger Co. | OH | 411,922 | $11.8B | $2.0M |
| Kelly Retirement Savings Plan | Kelly Services, Inc. | MI | 147,070 | $343M | $516K |
| Accenture United States 401(k) Match and Savings Plan | Accenture LLP | IL | 112,414 | $21.3B | $478K |
| Abm 401(k) Employee Savings Plan | Abm Industries Incorporated | NY | 88,660 | $696M | $931K |
| Securitas Security Services USA Incentive Savings and Retirement Plan | Securitas Security Services USA, in | CA | 83,051 | $519M | $1.0M |
| Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. and Affiliates Employee Savings Plan | Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. | TN | 57,285 | $225M | $370K |
| KPMG 401(k) Capital Accumulation Plan | KPMG LLP | NJ | 55,312 | $10.5B | $1.8M |
| Waste Management Retirement Savings Plan | Waste Management, Inc. | TX | 47,129 | $4.08B | $1.5M |
| J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. Employee Retirement Plan | J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. | AR | 38,485 | $1.41B | $1.7M |
| Fiserv 401(k) Savings Plan | Fiserv Solutions, LLC. | WI | 36,649 | $5.13B | $1.3M |
| The Southern Company Employee Savings Plan | Southern Company Services, Inc. | GA | 35,609 | $9.30B | $1.6M |
| Aecom Retirement & Savings Plan | Aecom | TX | 32,344 | $6.78B | $2.9M |
| Sedgwick 401(k) Savings Plan | Sedgwick Claims Management Services, Inc. | TN | 31,785 | $1.91B | $1.3M |
| Lithia Motors, Inc. 401(k) Plan | Lithia Motors, Inc. | OR | 30,021 | $1.03B | $1.6M |
| McLane Company, Inc. Profit Sharing Plan | McLane Company, Inc. | TX | 29,196 | $1.51B | $1.5M |
| Conagra Brands Retirement Income Savings Plan | Conagra Brands, Inc. | IL | 28,863 | $1.74B | $782K |
| The Mastec, Inc. 401(k) Retirement Plan | Mastec, Inc. | FL | 28,413 | $736M | $1.0M |
| Restaurant Brands International Savings Plan | Restaurant Brands International | FL | 26,777 | $193M | $10K |
| Retirement Savings Plan | Corteva Agriscience, LLC | DE | 24,519 | $7.02B | $973K |
| Amedisys Holding, LLC 401(k) Plan | Amedisys Holding, L.L.C. | LA | 24,237 | $955M | $1.1M |
| Amgen Retirement and Savings Plan | Amgen Inc. | CA | 22,645 | $7.72B | $5.3M |
| Pension Plan of Local 464A | Pension Plan of Local 464A | NJ | 21,542 | $1.24B | $567K |
| Fastenal Company & Subsidiaries 401(k) and Employee Stock Ownership Plan | Fastenal Company & Subsidiaries | MN | 21,022 | $1.06B | $558K |
| Spartannash Company Savings Plus Plan | Spartannash Company | MI | 18,814 | $709M | $62K |
| Alorica 401(k) Retirement Plan | Alorica, Inc. | CA | 18,734 | $146M | $253K |
| Dover Corporation Retirement Savings Plan | Dover Corporation | IL | 18,306 | $1.86B | $1.1M |
| United Food & Commercial Workers Union Local 880 - Retail Food Employers Joint Pension Fund | United Food & Commercial Workers Union Local 880 - Retail Food | OH | 17,755 | $460M | $1.6M |
| First Watch 401(k) Savings Plan | First Watch Restaurants, Inc. | FL | 16,771 | $38.5M | $34K |
| Stantec 401(k) Plan | Stantec Consulting Services Inc. | AZ | 16,713 | $2.32B | $668K |
| Travel + Leisure Co. Employee Savings Plan | Travel + Leisure Co. | FL | 16,663 | $962M | $768K |
| Avis Budget Group, Inc. Employee Savings Plan | Avis Budget Group, Inc. | NJ | 16,412 | $718M | $609K |
| Worldwide Flight Services, Inc. 401(k) Plan | Worldwide Flight Services, Inc. | TX | 16,245 | $83.3M | $117K |
| Crown Equipment Corporation 401(k) Retirement Savings Plan and Trust | Crown Equipment Corporation | OH | 15,888 | $1.27B | $940K |
| United Food & Commercial Workers Union - Employer Pension Fund | United Food & Commercial Workers Union - Employer Pension Fund | OH | 15,681 | $339M | $1.0M |
| Jabil 401(k) Retirement Plan | Jabil, Inc. | FL | 15,402 | $1.26B | $691K |
| Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma Thrift Plan | Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma | OK | 15,144 | $425M | $322K |
| Trilogy Management Services, LLC Retirement Savings Plan | Trilogy Management Services, LLC | KY | 14,995 | $194M | $578K |
| Extensis Group Retirement Savings Plan | Extensis Group, LLC | NJ | 14,468 | $682M | $95K |
| BlackRock Retirement Savings Plan | BlackRock, Inc. | NY | 14,370 | $4.76B | $10K |
Questions and answers
How many plans does Merrill Lynch Pierce Fenner & Smith serve?
2,182 plans with 100 or more participants named it on Schedule C for plan year 2024. Plans that paid it under $5,000, small plans that file Form 5500-SF, and plans whose filings spell its name without an EIN under a different form are not counted.
What do plans pay Merrill Lynch Pierce Fenner & Smith?
The median plan reported $75.84 per participant in direct and indirect compensation (2,169 plans reporting an amount), or 0.19% of plan net assets. Eligible indirect compensation disclosed to the plan by formula is not reported as a dollar amount, so many filings understate what a provider receives.
What services are reported?
The service codes most often attached to it are Investment advisory (plan) (966 plans), Recordkeeping and information management (831 plans), Consulting (pension) (516 plans) and Investment advisory (participants) (194 plans).
Where does this come from?
Schedule C of Form 5500, Part I line 2, from the EBSA research files with filings received through 24 Aug 2026. Individuals named on Schedule C are excluded from this site.
Provenance
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration, Form 5500 research files, Schedule C Part I line 2, public domain, with filings received through 24 Aug 2026. Rows are grouped by the provider's EIN as entered by each plan; rows without an EIN join the EIN most often filed under the same name. Providers named on fewer than 25 plans have no page. See the methodology and corrections.