Takeda Pharmaceuticals Dings ‘Apples to Oranges’ 401(k) Lawsuit

Takeda Pharmaceuticals USA Inc. defended the target-date investments in its 401(k) plan from a proposed class action challenge, telling a federal judge in Boston that the case is based on inappropriate “apples to oranges” comparisons among funds.

The Northern Trust Focus Funds in Takeda’s $1.8 billion 401(k) plan are “inexpensive passively-managed index funds” that are “the very kind of investment options that Plaintiffs’ attorneys advocate for in other cases,” Takeda said in a motion to dismiss filed Monday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts. In painting the funds as imprudent, the plan participants compare the Focus...