Hobby Lobby...what do you make of this?

Veritas said:

Just like Mother Jones trying to make HL look like hypocrites because the mutual funds in the company 401 (k) (over which the have NO control) have invested in Big Pharma stocks that produce birth control devices.

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Misleading. A company sponsoring a 401K absolutely does have control over which mutual funds are included in its plan. And if it's concerned about moral values, it will make sure that none of those funds invest in companies whose products it considers immoral.

jayem said:

Misleading. A company sponsoring a 401K absolutely does have control over which mutual funds are included in its plan. And if it's concerned about moral values, it will make sure that none of those funds invest in companies whose products it considers immoral.

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Not true. I'm in the business. Nearly all employers choose a third party plan administrator which has a line up of funds, think Principal, Vanguard, Fidelity, etc. Even though they offer funds from other families, they don't and really couldn't from a practical standpoint offer the thousands available on the market and still keep admin fees down.

The criteria for choosing those funds is usually performance benchmarks and risk tolerance models along with fee structure. The only time moral values come into play is when "socially responsible" funds are offered. I have advised on numerous client plans from the largest employers to state deferred comp. I have never seen morally responsible funds such as the Catholic Ave Maria funds offered.

Catholic values guide Ave Maria fund manager - The Stockpickers - MarketWatch

The fact is, employees and their employers seek top performance and low fee structures. Large cap funds usually invest significantly in Big PHarma because it's such a profitable sector. The biggest trend in company retirement plans are target allocation funds. They are fund of funds and vary the asset mix based on retirement date. I'm not crazy about them but they are very popular and are low cost.

Veritas said:

The fact is, employees and their employers seek top performance and low fee structures. Large cap funds usually invest significantly in Big PHarma because it's such a profitable sector. The biggest trend in company retirement plans are target allocation funds. They are fund of funds and vary the asset mix based on retirement date. I'm not crazy about them but they are very popular and are low cost.

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OK, but legally, the employer retains the ultimate choice of who runs his 401K, and what investment vehicles are offered. As you say, I'm sure most employers make their choices based on convenience, customer service, investment return, and cost. And if HL does the same, wouldn't that imply that they value these concerns above their moral principles?