The Alberta Investment Management Corp. saw returns of 1.7 per cent during the third quarter of 2021, according to its quarterly report.
Between July and the end of September, the AIMCo saw the value of its assets rise from $123.4 billion to $130.1 billion, beating its benchmark of 0.9 per cent. On a year-to-date basis, the AIMCo saw returns of 9.2 per cent.
Read: AIMCo beats fixed income benchmarks with innovation, flexibility
While returns were down from the previous quarter, the annualized rate of return was actually higher at the end of the third quarter of 2021 than at its beginning. During the second quarter of the year, the AIMCo saw its assets rise at a faster pace, with returns of 5.2 per cent across all investments. Its annualized returns, however, were at 8.1 per cent.
In a press release, Dale MacMaster, chief investment officer at the AIMCo, said client portfolios had generated $4 billion above its benchmarks during the first half of 2021. “This outcome has been driven by solid performance in all asset portfolios, notably public and private equity. Despite rising yields during the early part of 2021, fixed income also contributed to AIMCo’s strong second quarter performance.”
Read: AIMCo focusing on all three legs of ESG stool: report
Meanwhile, during the same period, the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board saw returns of 3.8 per cent in real terms and 7.5 per cent on an annualized basis.
With the inclusion of $2.1 billion in contributions, its assets grew to $541.5 billion from $519.6 billion during the period. While returns from public equities were flat, gains were driven by increases in the value of its private equity investments and contributions from real assets and credit investments.
The plan also benefitted from the strength of the U.S. dollar relative to the Canadian dollar during the period, noted its report. At the end of September, the loonie’s value slid to US$0.79 from $0.81 at the beginning of July.
Read: Domestic equity returns bolstering Canadian DB pension plan solvency: report