Assets in 529 college savings plans increased slightly in the second quarter of 2013, according to data from Strategic Insight. Total assets topped $183 billion, a 1.8% increase over last quarter and a nearly 17% increase from last year's second-quarter total.
"From an industry asset level perspective, 529 saving plans continue to reach year-over-year all-time highs," according to Strategic Insight.
The company released a report Thursday highlighting second-quarter results for college savings plans. Inflows were estimated at nearly $3 billion, up from $2.5 billion for the same period last year. However, inflows have tapered off since their high of $3.3 billion last quarter.
Assets in prepaid plans topped $22 billion in the second quarter, down slightly from earlier this year. Compared to the second quarter of 2012, prepaid plans added $652 million in assets.
Looking at open plans only, assets increased 0.5% in the second quarter, and nearly 5% since last year. There are more than 1 million active accounts, Strategic Insight found, a 0.7% increase since the first quarter.
Out of 20 prepaid plans, 17 provided data for gross sales to assets ratios. Gross contributions were more than 2.5% of assets, according to the report. The ratio of contributions minus distributions to assets was over 1.2%.
Strategic Insight also named the 10 best 529 plans based on their second-quarter assets. The ranking is unchanged from last quarter.
Here are the top plans, listed by fund name and distributor:
- College America; American Funds
- New York's CSP-Direct; Vanguard
- UNIQUE College Investing Plan; Fidelity
- The Vanguard 529 Savings Plan; Vanguard
- CollegeBoundfund; AllianceBernstein
- NextGen College Investing Program; Merrill Lynch
- Utah Educational Savings Plan; State of Utah
- ScholarShare College Savings Plan; TIAA-CREF
- U.Fund College Investing Plan; Fidelity
- BlackRock CollegeAdvantage 529 Plan; BlackRock
American Funds is the top administrator of 529 plans, despite only being offered in Virginia, according to Strategic Insight. In the second quarter, the company managed $39 billion in its College America fund, up 18.4% from last year.
