Canada Pension Plan's assets up by $21.9B in three months
The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board's (CPPIB) total assets rose by $21.9 billion in the three months to Sept. 30, helped by positive investment gains of 3.8 per cent, the country's biggest pension fund manager said on Friday.
While assets rose 4.2 per cent, growth was slightly lower than the 4.5-per-cent increase in the preceding three months and the lowest in four quarters, according to an analysis by Reuters. Net assets increased to a record $541.5 billion at the end of CPPIB'S second fiscal quarter, from the previous quarter, primarily driven by gains in its private equity investments, real assets and credit businesses, CPPIB said in a statement.
CPPIB, which is the only one of Canada's top pensions to provide quarterly performance data, also benefited from foreign exchange gains amid the rebound in the U.S. dollar against the Canadian dollar while public equity investments were flat. As of Sept. 30, CPPIB allocated 27.7 per cent to public equity, 26.1 per cent to private equity, 15 per cent to credit, 8.5 per cent to real estate, 8.2 per cent to infrastructure, 3.8 per cent to sustainable energy and 10.7 per cent to government bonds, cash and absolute return strategies.
The diversified portfolio helped CPPIB to achieve a record 11.6 per cent, annualized 10-year net return at the end of the last quarter, CPPIB president and CEO John Graham said. Significant transactions in the past quarter included a new joint venture with Round Hill Capital for investment in purpose-built student accommodation across continental Europe, allocating 475 million euros ($683 million) initially. CPPIB also committed 200 million euros in financing to U.S. and German real estate owner RFR and 50 million euros to Nordic-based private equity manager Summa Equity.