Neuberger Berman [see profile] and Vanguard [see profile] have the most popular small-cap funds in 401(k)s. Today San Diego-based BrightScope released its list of the top 12 small-cap U.S. equity mutual funds by assets inside of 401(k) plans.

"Small-cap is an asset class with a lot of opportunity," BrightScope CEO Mike Alfred told The 401kWire, noting that more than 16 percent of the 50,000-plus 401(k) plans BrightScope tracks don't even have a single small-cap fund in their lineups.

The top 12 list (see below) notably doesn't include a single fund from bundled 401(k) titan Fidelity [see profile]. Alfred said that Fidelity's offerings -- such as the four-star, $34.8-billion Fidelity Low-Priced Stock Fund and the three-star, $3.8-billion Fidelity Small-Cap Stock Fund -- are not considered small-cap funds by Morningstar, hence they were excluded from this list.

"Neuberger Berman is dominant. Their Genesis Fund is the 800-pound gorilla in small-cap," Alfred said, noting that the fund boasts almost $6 billion from 1,455 401(k) plans in BrightScope's database.

The top 12 small-cap funds are:

1) the four-star, $11.7-billion Neuberger Berman Genesis Fund;

2) the four-star, $10.5-billion Vanguard Explorer Fund;

3) the three-star, $26.1-billion Vanguard Small-Cap Index Fund;

4) the four-star, $7.6-billion T. Rowe Price Small-Cap Stock Fund [see profile];

5) the five-star, $7.6-billion Allianz NFJ Small Cap Value Fund [see profile];

6) the four-star, $4.1-billion Wells Fargo Advantage Small Cap Value Fund [see profile];

7) the four-star, $4.1-billion Lord Abbett Small-Cap Value Fund [see profile];

8) the four-star, $8.7-billion T. Rowe Price New Horizons Fund;

9) the four-star, $7.5-billion T. Rowe Price Small-Cap Value Fund;

10) the four-star, $3.2-billion American Beacon Small Cap Value Fund [see profile];

11) the four-star, $9.2-billion Vanguard Small Cap Growth Index Fund;

12) and the four-star, $4.8-billion Royce Low Priced Stock Fund [see profile]. 

Stay ahead of the news ... Sign up for our email alerts now
CLICK HERE