Endowments and Foundations - Articles & White Papers

The Asset Owner 100 is a Thinking Ahead Institute study which gathers data on the total assets of the top 100 asset owners around the world. Though not included in the ranking, the study also presents the total assets for the top 10 insurers and the top 10 foundations and endowments.

In May 2023, Graystone Consulting surveyed investment decision-makers at 100 endowments, foundations, and other non-profit organizations. All respondents represented organizations with at least $100 million in AUM, with 56 of them representing an organization with more than $1 billion in AUM.

Alternative investments, or “alts,” constitute approximately 30% of the assets of public worker pension funds and 60% of those of large endowments. There are two parts to the paper. In the first, I estimate the alpha of a large sample of US public pension funds. In the second, I use a novel approach to examine how…

Discover the revolutionary approach to equity investing tailored for foundations in our latest paper, "Equity Reimagined: A Foundation-Centric Approach to Investment Success.” Unveiling strategies that align with the unique needs and goals of foundations, this insightful guide serves as a beacon in navigating the…

We examine compensation for endowment Chief Investment Officers (CIOs) overseeing portfolios with significant alternative asset allocations. Our study shows that large endowments with high alternative allocations hire CIOs with stronger backgrounds, pay them more, and structure compensation based on past investment…

Foundations find themselves standing at a significant crossroads. The traditional equity mandates, which have long been a cornerstone in the investment portfolios of foundations, now seem less adept at navigating the frequent regime changes driven by a convergence of unprecedented macroeconomic risks.

This paper examines alts’ impact on the performance of college and university endowments in the US using data from National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO). It concludes that, since the GFC, alts have had a strongly adverse effect on performance across the endowment size spectrum.

Philanthropy makes an extraordinary but underappreciated contribution to the global economy each year. The U.S. saw total charitable dollars decline after a pandemic-related boom, while giving rebounded in the UK. Total charitable receipts have bounced between growth and decline in recent years, albeit at different times in…

Who manages foundation money and how well are they doing?

Bob Maynard and Steve McCourt, CFA debated the merits of the endowment model in late March 2023. Here, we share excerpts from their discussion as well as comments gleaned from email exchanges with our panelists after the actual debate. This report was edited by Robert Schmidt (RS), Executive Director of The Brandes Center.…

Institutions historically have held higher average allocations to alternatives than advisors (23 percent versus 6 percent),* given barriers to entry such as manager access, perceived costs, liquidity considerations, and high investment minimums. We have compiled insights into the portfolio allocations of institutions and…

Fidelity analysis shows nonprofits can potentially improve investment performance and reduce spending volatility by accessing above-median private market managers.

It’s often tempting to bundle entities with seemingly similar objectives under one umbrella. A common practice in the industry is to group endowments and foundations together, referring to them collectively as “E&F.” However, as we delve deeper, we find that this practice, albeit convenient, overlooks the nuanced…

We provide some clues as to why some of the largest endowments have disappointing results in FY 2023.

As a 322-year-old institution, Yale benefits from the rare ability to invest with a truly long time horizon. Given this, we measure our success over decades, not days, months, or even years. The endowment’s return of 10.9% per year during the ten years ending June 30, 2023 surpassed the mean endowment return by 3.0% per year…

Retrenchment in the valuations of venture capital portfolio companies affected the performance of our pooled investments, resulting in a return of -2.9 percent as measured using valuations received within one month of fiscal year-end. Shaped by these dynamics, our net assets of $32,183.0 million at fiscal year close were 3.2…

Using the basic tenets of modern portfolio theory, the endowment is diversified across multiple asset classes with differing correlations and risk and return characteristics. The endowment is managed with a total return goal of attaining an average annualized real return in excess of 5% in order to support spending and…

The University’s investments, consisting primarily of publicly traded fixed income and equity securities, alternative investments, and cash held for reinvestment, are stated at fair value as of June 30, 2023 and 2022.

As of June 30, 2023, the university’s endowment was comprised of more than 6,000 individual funds totaling approximately $11.6 billion.

For the most recent fiscal year, which ended on June 30, 2023, the return on the Harvard endowment was 2.9% and the value stood at $50.7 billion. The endowment also made available more than $2.2 billion for the University’s operating budget, supporting financial aid, faculty, research initiatives, and more.