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It has been difficult to find a more out-of-favor sector in institutional investors’ portfolios than energy over the past five years, and with the recent spread of COVID-19 reducing demand for oil & gas, that reality appears set to continue – creating both challenges and opportunities. Amid the sector’s ongoing evolution, the energy PE investment strategy that dominated the market has become outdated, and investors who wish to capitalize on potential opportunities in this market must re-think their approach.

According to Cambridge Associates (CA) indexes, private equity and venture capital (PE/VC) in the developed markets underperformed those in emerging markets in first half 2022. The Cambridge Associates LLC Developed Markets ex US PE/VC Index returned -11.1% in the period, in USD terms, and -3.3% in euros. Because returns are measured in US dollars, the […]

In this edition of VantagePoint, we review the shape of historical recoveries from bear markets and recessions. We believe that both a V-shaped and a disastrous L-shaped economic recovery are unlikely, with a W- or U-shaped economic recovery more probable.

While corporate plan sponsors are keenly aware of interest rate risk within their defined benefit plans, few fully appreciate the complex and significant risk posed by credit spreads.

As pressures on pensions mount, we believe financial executives are best served by re-evaluating major decisions in terms of the true tools at their disposal. In this paper we review four levers that are fundamental drivers of pension costs and outcomes: asset returns, liability hedging, contribution policy, and benefit management. Balancing these levers is critical to enabling greater probability of success in managing pension risk, and we introduce a framework for chief financial officers and other financial executives to use in doing so.

Let’s Get Smarter as Co-investing Gets Harder. Investor interest in co-investing has grown in recent years, given the benefits (discussed in more detail below) for both general partners (GPs) and limited partners (LPs). The co-investment universe has grown rapidly, with Cambridge Associates (CA) estimating total private equity co-investment activity in 2022 to have been ~$50 […]

For many investors, 2024 started where last year left off. Hopes of an economic soft landing are growing, inflation is slowly receding, and last year’s winners (e.g., mega-cap growth stocks) continue to rip higher. Credit markets have seen more muted gains after a gangbuster fourth quarter 2023, but strong demand and rising confidence mean issuance […]

In an increasingly complex landscape, the fiduciary management of robust 403(b) plans has become more challenging than ever.