Canada Pension Plan Investment Board returns 4% for quarter

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, Toronto, returned 4% on its investments for the quarter ended Dec. 31, spokesman Dan Madge said.

The quarter ended Dec. 31 represents the third quarter of the pension fund's fiscal year.

Assets increased C$8.9 billion ($7.1 billion) to C$337.1 billion from three months earlier and increased C$20.4 billion over the past nine months.

The quarterly increase consisted of C$13.1 billion in net income after all CPPIB costs, which were partially offset by C$4.2 billion in net outflows used to pay CPP benefits.

The nine-month increase consisted of C$21.2 billion in net income partially offset by $800 million in net outflows.

As of Dec. 31, CPPIB had an asset allocation of 40.5% public equity, 31.6% fixed income, 22.3% real assets, 19.4% private equity, -6.8% cash and absolute-return strategies, and -7% external debt issuance.

The negative balance in cash and absolute-return strategies represents the net amount of financing through derivatives and repurchase agreements and the current net position from absolute-return strategies, said a news release Friday.

CPPIB returned an annualized 10.4% for the five years ended Dec. 31 and an annualized 5.7% for 10 years.