IBM employees losing $400 million on the company's stock should be a wake-up call

IBM’s stock slide after an earnings warning sparked major losses for company employees holding the shares in their 401(k) accounts. The technology firm’s stock fell more than $73, or about 25%, after it warned that second-quarter earnings would be below expectations. Nearly 150,000 employees held a total of 5.77 million IBM shares inside their 401(k) plans, according to the latest filing, translating to an average loss of roughly $2,700 per worker. While the overall 401(k) plan had net assets of $59 billion, the hit underscores the risk of heavy employer-stock exposure. Legal and retirement-plan experts cited “double jeopardy,” since job and retirement savings can be tied to the same company amid earnings disappointments.