U-M endowment up $500M after another strong year

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In the same year the Victors for Michigan fundraising campaign came to a close, the value of the University of Michigan’s endowment rose to $12.4 billion, half a billion dollars more than a year ago.

Chief Investment Officer Erik Lundberg told the Board of Regents on Oct. 17 that the investment return for the university’s long-term investment portfolio, which is mostly made up by the endowment, was 6.4 percent in the 2019 fiscal year that ended June 30.

With a 20-year annualized return of 9.2 percent, U-M ranks in the top decile for long-term investment performance among university endowments, where the median annualized return is 6.3 percent.

This long-term performance, Lundberg said, was sufficient to sustain and grow the endowment in real terms, net of spending.

Endowment distributions — the money university units and affiliated organizations get to spend — totaled $368 million in fiscal year 2019, up from $346.9 million a year earlier. Endowment distributions total $4.7 billion over the past two decades.

The university’s endowment actually is a collection of more than 11,700 separate endowment funds that provide support for specific purposes such as scholarships, educational programs, research and professorships.

For example, roughly $2.4 billion, or 20 percent of the endowment, is dedicated for use by Michigan Medicine and other clinical activities. Another $2.6 billion, or 22 percent, is earmarked for student scholarships and fellowships.

“The positive relative performance of the long-term portfolio compared to the median endowment suggests that the Investment Office has added more than $3 billion since it was established in fiscal year 2000,” said Lundberg, who has led that office since its inception.

Many endowment gifts are from the university’s Victors for Michigan fundraising campaign, which wrapped up Dec. 31, 2018. The campaign raised $5.28 billion from more than 398,000 donors and U-M became the first public university to raise $5 billion in a single campaign.

Also at their meeting, the regents approved an updated “model portfolio” for the university’s long-term portfolio, which provides investment allocation ranges for each individual asset class.

The approved model portfolio for the year ahead would be composed of 25 percent equities, 18 percent absolute return, 12 percent fixed income, 25 percent private equity and venture capital, 10 percent real estate, 8 percent natural resources and 2 percent cash. Within each category there is an acceptable range to allow for modest shifts throughout the year. The board also has the flexibility to adjust the ranges as new investment opportunities arise.

To ensure continuing support for future generations, the university’s endowment distribution policy, together with its long-term investment strategy, provides a steady flow of dollars each year for operations. This long-term approach also is designed to protect and grow the endowment corpus in real terms.

The U-M endowment is ranked the ninth-largest among all U.S. universities and third among public universities after two university systems. On a per-student basis, U-M’s endowment has been ranked 94th, making it much smaller than many private school peers while supporting a much larger number of students.

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Comments

  1. Aurora Endres-Bercher
    on October 18, 2019 at 9:06 am

    “To ensure continuing support for future generations, the university’s endowment distribution policy, together with its long-term investment strategy, provides a steady flow of dollars each year for operations.”

    When I think of continuing support for future generations, I also think of climate change and wonder what kind of future we’re really building for future generations. I’d be interested to hear how U-M is ensuring carbon neutrality and reinvesting away from fossil fuels.

    I’m waiting for Michigan to become the leader and the best in a sustainable future.

  2. Christopher Karounos
    on October 18, 2019 at 5:05 pm

    No mention of the 1 billion dollars invested in fossil fuels… This is the single greatest detriment to the University’s stated mission of ensuring a bright future for its students.

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