Annual Report
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2014-2015 South Carolina Retirement System Investment Commission Annual Investment Report Beneficiaries First: Their Future, Our Mission. South Carolina Retirement System Investment Commission Annual Investment Report Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 2015 Capitol Center 1201 Main Street, Suite 1510 Columbia, SC 29201 Edward Giobbe, MBA Chairman July 1, 2014- Present Table of Contents Chairman Report ............................................................................................................................ 1 Consultant’s Letter ......................................................................................................................... 3 Overview ......................................................................................................................................... 5 Commission .................................................................................................................................... 6 Policy Allocation ............................................................................................................................. 9 Manager Returns (Net of Fees) .................................................................................................... 10 Securities Lending ........................................................................................................................ 14 Expenses ....................................................................................................................................... 15 Risk ................................................................................................................................................ 17 Appendices Appendix A: Summary Schedule of Assets and Derivatives ...................................................... 19 Appendix B: Cash and Cash Equivalent Holdings ...................................................................... 20 Appendix C: Short Duration Holdings........................................................................................ 24 Appendix D: Fixed Income Holdings .......................................................................................... 28 Appendix E: Equity Holdings...................................................................................................... 66 Appendix F: Alternative Investments and GTAA ..................................................................... 101 Appendix G: Futures Holdings ................................................................................................. 104 Appendix H: Swap Holdings .................................................................................................... 105 South Carolina Retirement System Investment Commission Chairman Report The Honorable Nikki Haley, Governor State Fiscal Accountability Authority Members of the General Assembly of South Carolina Dear Ladies and Gentlemen: On behalf of the Retirement System Investment Commission (RSIC), it is my pleasure to provide the enclosed report on the investments and operations of the South Carolina Retirement Systems portfolio for Fiscal Year Ending 2015. FYE 2015 Investment Performance Review Capital markets during the fiscal year were challenging for the Plan as broad US equity indices showed only modest gains, domestic fixed income were mixed, and both non-U.S. equity and fixed income markets saw negative returns. Real estate and private equity, however, posted strong returns. The Plan earned a return of 1.60 percent net of fees for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2015 and out-performed the policy benchmark by 39 basis points. The 3-year annualized net return of 8.81 percent and 5-year annualized net return of 8.87 percent also outperformed the policy benchmark, as well as the Plan’s actuarial assumed rate of return of 7.5 percent. As of June 30, 2015, total Plan assets were $29.2 billion, reflecting a $613 million decline during the year. This decrease resulted from net benefit disbursements of $1.1 billion, offset in part by $454 million from investment gains. For a sixth consecutive fiscal year, the total fund experienced a positive annual return. Highlights include real estate, the best performing asset class which earned 19.32% during the fiscal year. Private equity was the next best performing asset class with a 9.71% return. Low Beta Hedge Funds saw a strong 8.62% return during the year. Bonds were disappointing across the board, with Conservative Fixed Income earning only 0.36% and both emerging market debt and mixed credit seeing negative returns during the year. Asset Allocation The asset allocation for the fiscal year was adopted at the May 1, 2014 Commission meeting and remained unchanged from the previous fiscal year at the recommendation of staff and RSIC’s independent consultant, Aon Hewitt (formerly known as Hewitt Ennis Knupp). The recommendation to maintain the conservative asset and risk allocation was driven by analysis of the liabilities and the financial health of the Retirement Systems and the belief, at the time, that the then current policy asset allocation would achieve the goals and objectives of the Commission over a long term horizon. However, the weakness of the FY 2015 returns has spurred RSIC to challenge its conviction in both the existing asset allocation as well as many of its asset classes. In recent months, staff has been aggressively studying alternative portfolio allocations with the goal of improving expected returns. The Commission has already adopted staff recommendations to reallocate three percent of the portfolio from cash to public equity and to eliminate the static target weights from the private equity and private debt asset classes. Commissioners have also instructed staff to bring to them more information concerning different portfolio allocations as well as strategies designed to improve the Plan’s expected return. 1 2014-2015 Annual Investment Report We feel that this effort at fundamentally examining asset allocation is especially crucial given what many believe will be a sustained low interest rate and low return environment over the next several years Conclusions RSIC continues to seek superior returns with an acceptable level of risk. We remain committed to putting the beneficiaries first in each decision, and we will continue to challenge our investment approach in pursuit of the superior investment results that ensure their security. We are deeply honored to serve our beneficiaries and participants and have confidence in our talented and dedicated staff’s ability to manage the Systems’ funds and assets. Thank you for the support you have given us. Sincerely, Edward N. Giobbe, MBA Chairman 2 South Carolina Retirement System Investment Commission Consultant’s Letter November 11, 2015 The Honorable Nikki Haley, Governor State Fiscal Accountability Authority Members of the General Assembly of South Carolina RE: FYE 2015 Report Dear Governor and Members: As the investment consultant for the Retirement System Investment Commission (RSIC), Aon Hewitt Investment Consulting (AHIC) is pleased to submit this summary of the investment structure and performance of the South Carolina Retirement System (SCRS) investment portfolio for the fiscal year ended (FYE) June 30, 2015. The 2014-15 fiscal year was characterized by the continued dominance of U.S. equities as the sharp rally of the U.S. dollar held back local market gains of non-U.S. assets. Numerous factors contributed to the U.S. dollar rally. The sharp fall of both the Euro and the Yen was largely driven by the loosening of monetary policy by the European Central Bank and the Bank of Japan. In contrast, the U.S. Federal Reserve ended its quantitative easing program in October 2014, which was the first step away from its historically loose monetary policy. Other factors driving U.S. dollar gains more broadly included strong relative growth trends in the U.S., attractive U.S. sovereign yields, and country-specific situations such as falling commodity prices and heightened geopolitical risks. Throughout the fiscal year, the Commission and its staff worked hard to further several long-term initiatives, including: . Reviewing asset allocation to improve expected portfolio return and mitigate risk . Refining investment strategy to lower costs, where possible During the fiscal year ending June 30, 2015, the SCRS investment portfolio returned 1.6% on a net-of- fee basis. This return exceeded that of the Policy Index by 0.4 percentage points. Over the trailing three- and five-year periods ending June 30, 2015, the SCRS portfolio returns were 8.8% and 8.9%, respectively, which also exceeded the returns of the Policy Index. All returns are reported on a time-weighted return basis. Aon Hewitt | Retirement and Investment 200 E. Randolph Street, Suite 1500 | Chicago, IL 60601 t +1.312.381.1200 | f +1.312.381.1366 | aonhewitt.com Investment advice and consulting services provided by Aon Hewitt Investment Consulting, Inc., an Aon Company 3 2014-2015 Annual Investment Report November 11, 2015 Page 2 As of June 30, 2015, the SCRS investment portfolio totaled $29.2 billion. This represented a decrease of $0.6 billion from its value on June 30, 2014 due to net outflows of $1.1 billion and investment gains of $0.5 billion. The portfolio’s asset allocation at fiscal year-end was as follows: Global Public Equity 32.3% GTAA1/Risk Parity 10.4 Core Fixed Income 9.6 Low Beta Hedge Funds 9.0 Private Equity 8.8 Mixed Credit 7.4 Private Debt 5.7 Emerging Market Debt 5.0 Real Estate 3.9 Cash and Short Duration