The Cambridge Associates LLC benchmark indexes for US private equity and US venture capital produced modest returns for fourth quarter 2015, leading to lower calendar year performance than either index earned in the two previous years. Both benchmark indexes outperformed the public indexes for the year, but not the quarter.
With virtually limitless choices along the asset allocation spectrum, an allocation to private investments greater than 15% has served many investors well. Are you on the right track?
Third quarter 2015 performance saw returns drop into negative territory. The Cambridge Associates LLC Global ex US Developed Markets Private Equity and Venture Capital Index returned -0.6%, and the Cambridge Associates LLC Emerging Markets Private Equity and Venture Capital Index fell to -4.8%.
While US private equity and venture capital struggled during third quarter 2015, they both outperformed the S&P 500, the Russell 2000® small-cap, and the Nasdaq Composite indexes. The third quarter return of -1.4% for the Cambridge Associates LLC US Private Equity Index® marked the benchmark’s first negative quarter in three years and the -0.4% return for the Cambridge Associates LLC US Venture Capital Index® represented that benchmark’s first down quarter since 2011.
This primer provides an in-depth overview of buyouts, including types and characteristics, the investment process, returns, risks, and the due diligence process.
Venture capital offers compelling returns for the stalwart long-term investor. The most relevant question for investors in any stage of venture is the potential impact of prevailing market conditions on ultimate returns. In this brief, we look at valuation data today and also use our proprietary data set of funds to review historical returns during periods when valuations reset.
The Cambridge Associates LLC Global ex US Developed Markets Private Equity and Venture Capital Index returned 7.6% in US$ terms in second quarter 2015; the Cambridge Associates Emerging Markets Private Equity and Venture Capital Index returned 4.4%.
US private equity and venture capital funds produced healthy results during second quarter 2015, outpacing the S&P 500, the Russell 2000® small-cap, and the Nasdaq Composite indexes. Second quarter’s 3.8% return for the Cambridge Associates LLC US Private Equity Index® marked the benchmark’s 12th straight positive quarter, while the 6.7% return for the Cambridge Associates LLC US Venture Capital Index® represented that benchmark’s 15th consecutive positive quarter.
Conventional wisdom says that only ten venture-backed investments matter per year and that an equally concentrated number of certain venture firms makes those investments, but conventional wisdom may lead investors to miss attractive opportunities with managers that can provide exposure to substantial value creation.
The widely held belief that 90% of venture industry performance is generated by just the top ten firms is a catchy but unsupported claim that may lead investors to miss attractive opportunities with managers that can provide exposure to substantial value creation.