<prompt> Human: Ive read through the posts and I have a question about target funds. I recently started a job with a 401K option. Before the company was matching, I just threw money wherever and had a 3-4 return. Since my company started matching and I am 24, I elected to put my money into target funds that were returning 10-11 YTD Target 2040, 2045, and 2050. In the last 2 weeks theyve tanked and brought me to an overall negative rate. My understanding is: The target fund will be rebalanced along the life of the fund and will presumably return to a better rate. The target fund is tanking, so now would be a good time to move more out of stable and into the target fund. Im already contributing up to company match, but I could increase it to get more stock in the target fund. That would be a good idea if my Roth IRA were maxed out.Are my assumptions generally true?EDIT: Thanks everyone, this has been really helpful. I feel much safer about the target date funds but will continue to monitor them - and now I know to compare them to the overall market.  <response>: With mutual funds, generally speaking, you want to be in for the long-haul. So dont go fucking with the allocations unless you really need to. After two weeks of a down market, this is not the time to panic.Target funds include a mix of stocks and bonds, and the mix of what stocks what bonds, and the percentage of stocks v. bonds will evolve over time. Generally speaking, the stocks will simply move slowly toaway from what the fund managers believes will give a good return... and as the target retirement date comes closer, the fund will be more bonds than stocks less risk, but also less return.Rates are tied to the market performance and historical yields will in no way be a predictor of future returns.Always put in what your company will match, not a penny more. Any extra income you have should be used to pay down high-rate debts, create an emergency fund, then max out a ROTH IRA on your own most here would advocate for Vanguard, but theres many options.Regarding your specific questions... 1 yes, but at a point they will take on less riskreward by more heavily incorporating bonds. This is to protect the wealth you have created 20-40 years down the line instead of risking it more to build that wealth. 2 dont mess with it, and target date funds are not really any more or less risky than a classical mutual fund until youre 10 years out or so from that target date. 3 I think I covered in the previous paragraph. 