University of Maine System's investment committee approved hiring Walter Scott & Partners to manage about $37 million in active global equities and J O Hambro Capital Management to run about $18 million in active international equities for its $368 million managed investment pool of endowment funds.
The approvals at the committee's meeting Thursday were the results of asset allocation changes, including the creation of a new 10% target allocation to global equities, confirmed Tracy E. Elliott, vice president of finance and controller of the Bangor-based university, in an email.
Walter Scott was hired in 2019 by the system to manage $8 million in the same strategy for its $27 million pension fund.
The new global equity target will be funded by reductions in the targets to international equities to 10% from 13%, domestic large-cap equities to 17% from 22%, domestic small/midcap equities to 7% from 8%, and international small-cap equities to 4% from 5%.
The committee also approved hiring J O Hambro as a new active international equity manager to increase diversification in that portfolio. A presentation from investment consultant NEPC shows the incumbent managers had similar risk/return characteristics.
The committee approved terminating Globeflex Capital from its $24 million active international equity portfolio and reducing Morgan Stanley Investment Management's $24 million active international equity portfolio to $18 million to fund the new portfolio and meet the new targets.
Targets that will remain unchanged are 24% fixed income, 15% global asset allocation strategies, 7% emerging markets equities and 6% hedge funds.
As of Dec. 31, the actual allocation was 23% domestic large-cap equities, 22.5% fixed income, 14.8% GAA, 12.7% international equities, 8.1% domestic small/midcap equities, 6.9% emerging markets equities, 5.7% hedge funds, 5.2% international small-cap equities, 0.6% private equity and 0.5% cash.
NEPC assisted with the hires.
