Study: Educational Endowments' Investment Returns Averaged 15.5 Percent in FY2014
16%
17%
10%
9%
18%
19%
53%
51%
3%
4%
*Dollar-weighted
When viewed across the size cohorts, Study data show significant differences in asset allocation. For example, while institutions with assets over $1 billion allocated 13 percent of their portfolios to domestic equities and 8 percent to fixed income, institutions with assets under $25 million allocated 43 percent and 26 percent to these asset classes, respectively. The largest endowments allocated fully 57 percent of their portfolios to alternative strategies, while at the other end of the size spectrum the smallest endowments allocated only 10 percent. Across the other four size cohorts, a similar pattern was observed: Allocations to traditional asset classes—domestic equities and fixed income—were higher at smaller endowments, while the reverse was true for alternative strategies, where the size of the allocation decreased with the size of the endowment. Only allocations to international equities and short-term securities/cash/other were relatively steady across size cohorts.
