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Moderate gains in foreign holdings are expected to help CWRU
maintain its place in national rankings of college and university
endowments despite recent declines in the stock market, according
to the University's treasurer.
Offsetting losses in domestic stocks, CWRU saw a 5.6 percent
rise in the value of shares of foreign companies the University
owns, which comprise about 15 percent of the pooled endowment.
"We were very pleased with that portion of our portfolio, since
foreign stocks overall were down about 9 percent for the fiscal
year 2002," said William Rose, CWRU treasurer.
At the end of the University's 2002 fiscal year on June 30, the
combined endowment stood at $1.35 billion, generating a total
return of -3.4 percent for the year.
The pooled endowment, which represents about 75 percent of the
combined endowment, fared a little better with a -2.2 percent
total return. However, the performance benchmark against which
CWRU measures itself was down 8.67 percent, while the Standard
& Poors 500 index declined by 18 percent in the same period.
The combined endowment is made up of the pooled endowment, which
is managed by the university's investment committee; the unpooled
endowment, outside trusts managed by external trustees and from
which the University receives income; deferred gifts; and the
endowment of the Case Alumni Association.
"It's been an extremely difficult stock market, the worst in
the U. S. since the Great Depression in terms of the drop from
its March 2000 peak," Rose said. "Hardly anyone has avoided losing
money in the past year."
The value of the stocks of U. S. companies in the university's
pooled endowment portfolio, which represent about one quarter
of the fund, declined by 21 percent during the year.
The University invests in a variety of financial instruments
other than stocks, including bonds, real estate and alternative
investment vehicles such as venture capital funds and hedge funds.
Several of those segments of the endowment were also up for the
year.
Despite the decline in the endowment's value, Rose said he expects
the University to retain its place in the rankings of college
and university endowments as compiled by the National Association
of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO).
"With the stock market so uncertain, our strategy in the coming
months is to continue to diversify and look for investments with
attractive cash yields," Rose said. "We are also looking for alternatives
to equities that can generate respectable returns in a variety
of markets."
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