Yale Endowment Grows 28%, Topping $22 Billion

NY Times ^ | 27 September 2007 | GERALDINE FABRIKANT

[shrinkermd]

The endowment, which has been run by David F. Swensen since 1988, outperformed all its competitors, according to preliminary data widely circulated among endowment offices.

The Yale Endowment has had a 17.8 percent average annual return over the last decade, beating Harvard, its nearest rival in size, by 2.8 percentage points. During that 10-year period, Princeton came closest to Yale, with a 16.2 percent return.

The second-best-performing school last year was Amherst College, which generated a 27.8 percent return, to raise its value to $1.7 billion. Generally the larger university endowments do better than the smaller ones, according to data compiled by the National Association of College and University Business Officers.

Among the top 10 performing endowments last year, Notre Dame, Duke, Michigan, Virginia and Northwestern all had returns over 25 percent. Notre Dame came in third behind Yale and Amherst at 25.9 percent. Harvard, which has been in the news lately because of the sudden departure of its investment chief, Mohamed A. El-Erian, posted a 23 percent return, bringing its endowment to $34.9 billion.

Many indexes also posted very strong results in the fiscal year. The Wilshire 5000 was up 19.6 percent, and the Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index rose 18.36 percent, while the Morgan Stanley Emerging Markets index rose 41.76 percent.

[raybbr]

And, every year Yale’s lawyers fight with the city of New Have over a hundred thousand dollars or so worth of taxes.

[XR7]

Wow.
They might be able to outbid Microsoft and buy Facebook.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1903649/posts

[The_Media_never_lie]

And, every year Yale’s lawyers fight with the city of New Have over a hundred thousand dollars or so worth of taxes.

I can't help but remember the 80s when the shot across the bow was "Divestiture", no socially responsible endowment could invest money in South Africa and Rhodesia (now basket case Zimbabwe) so long as Apartheid was in effect.

Well, they caused one regime to collapse and be replaced with a ruthless dictator and another to be delt irreparable harm. Yet they never received any blame for their short sideness.

Now the fighting the city over 100k taxes seems very petty and socially irresponsible.

[The_Media_never_lie]

#4: The ivy league endowments lead the charge for “divestiture”.

[raybbr]

Now the fighting the city over 100k taxes seems very petty and socially irresponsible.

Don't you know? It's you and me that are supposed to sacrifce in the name of liberalism not the liberal elites.

[DB]

“Now the fighting the city over 100k taxes seems very petty and socially irresponsible.”

Not if they don’t owe it.

[Brilliant]

Why is the US taxpayer subsidizing Yale students, then?

[ikka]

How much was by investing in oil contracts that drove up the price of oil I wonder? I am pretty sure that Harvard at the least, was doing this.

[montag813]

Well, they caused one regime to collapse and be replaced with a ruthless dictator and another to be delt irreparable harm. Yet they never received any blame for their short sideness.

You must be mistaken. The return of Nelson Mandela ushered in a multicultural paradise of economic prosperity and social stability. There is peace in South Africa, and children dance and sing by streams of chocolate and rainbows of gumdrops.