Wilshire TUCS Reports Longest Institutional Assets Hot Streak Since 1998

Strong performances from all major asset classes leads to seventh quarter in a row of positive gains.

Wilshire Trust Universe Comparison Service (Wilshire TUCS) posted its seventh positive quarter in a row, its longest positive quarterly streak since June 1998, which saw 14 consecutive positive quarters.

The institutional assets saw an average return of 2.88% for all plan types in Q2 and an average one-year gain of 11.31%, compared to 10.49% for the year ending March 31, 2017.

This quarter’s one-year return is the highest since the period ending June 30, 2014, which reported a 15.51% gain.

Returns for Q2 saw strong performances from all major asset classes. The Wilshire 500 Total Market Index returned 2.95% for the quarter and 18.54% for the year ending June 30, 2017. The MSCI AC World (net)—excluding US—for international equities increased 5.78% in the quarter and 20.45% for the year.

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The Wilshire Bond Index also saw a 1.95% increase in Q2 and 1.64% for the year, resulting in a positive range of median plan-type returns for the quarter. The low median return for Taft Hartley Health and Welfare Funds was 6.35 % and the high median return Foundations and Endowments with assets greater than $500 million was 13.58%.

“In the second quarter, only Taft Hartley Health and Welfare Funds experienced median returns worse than the 60/40 portfolio, which returned 2.55%,” Robert J. Waid, managing director, Wilshire Associates said in a statement. “This pulled the median return for all plan types down slightly to 2.88%, but it remained above the 60/40 portfolio for the second quarter in a row. Last quarter was notably the first time this happened since the quarter ending June 30, 2015.”

Larger Public funds and Foundations and Endowments outperformed their smaller counterparts, the former returning 11.85% versus the latter’s 11.31%. The average exposure dropped to 37.58% compared to Q1’s 40.34%.

“For the year ending June 30, 2017, large Foundations and Endowments, large Public Plans and small Public Plans experienced median returns better than the 60/40 portfolio, which returned 11.85%,” Waid said. “This pulled the median return for all plan types up to 11.31%, but it remained just below the 60/40.”

Plans with assets larger than $1 billion reported media returns of 3.15% for Q2 and 12.01% for the year ending June 30, 2017. Plans with assets under $1 billion reported an average of 2.72% in Q2 and 11.12% for the year.

Wilshire TUCS is a cooperative effort between Wilshire Analytics, the investment technology unit of Wilshire Associates Inc., and custodial organizations.

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