We have worked with endowments and foundations for more than 40 years, and we’re proud to be associated with so many institutions that are making the world a better place.
We understand the investment challenges non-profit investors face. We also believe that every institution is different. That’s why our investment teams work to understand each client’s needs and to build a customized portfolio that aligns with each client’s long-term investment objectives, risk tolerances, liquidity needs, and other enterprise considerations.
With deep expertise in alternative assets, impact investing, and governance issues, we bring the needed resources to bear and deliver the portfolio that’s right for each client. Our enterprise advisory group specializes in linking enterprise factors like governance, finance, and fundraising to the investment portfolio to help inform good investment decisions — supported by decades of peer data and best practices.
We have experienced investors operating in key financial hubs around the world to source and evaluate opportunities with the goal of delivering the best investment ideas to our clients. We also leverage our market presence and scale to negotiate favorable terms and fees with managers, often creating a net reduction in overall fees paid. To increase alignment with our clients, we do not offer our own proprietary off-the-shelf investment products or accept payments by managers for recommending their products.
In this segment, Margaret shares her thoughts on the endowment model given the COVID-19 crisis and whether she believes it’s possible for an institution to achieve a 5% real return in the current market environment. She discusses investing in industry “disruptors,” the importance of diversification, and the debate around growth vs. value.
Nonprofit institutions have not been spared from the impact of COVID-19. In June 2020, when many endowed institutions were completing fiscal year 2020 and on the brink of a new fiscal year, we issued a survey that focused on endowment spending and other sources of liquidity for these institutions.
Do investors stand to gain more from a Trump victory or a Biden win in November’s US general election? Presidents often have a mix of market-friendly and market-unfriendly policies. Mitigating factors, such as a divided government, can offset market concerns or enthusiasm relating to one specific candidate’s policies. Investors should not tweak portfolios based on election prognostication.
Economic, market, and healthcare circumstances have been extraordinary over the last six months. However, attractive opportunities exist in some pockets of tech, relatively cheap public equities, and even in credit less supported by central bank activity. Additionally, the importance of investing in social equity has been brought into sharp relief by this crisis.
There are many facets of higher education finance, and it is often challenging to describe how the endowment fits into an institution’s financial picture. Endowment Radar is a visual tool that plots the endowment’s role in the college and university business model. It focuses on four key metrics to assess the endowment’s contributions to the […]
In 2018, we reviewed the state of social equity investing, with a focus on racial equity investing. The themes we highlighted then are even more relevant today. In this paper, we discuss the renewed sense of urgency around racial equity investing and put forward three actions investors can take to address the inequities inherent in our society.
In this webinar we explore the findings of a recent survey on how the pandemic is impacting non-profit revenues and endowment spending levels and addresses the role of the endowment in this environment, near-term and long-term implications of spending decisions, and balancing a sustainable financial equation.
