OMERS today announced a 2021 return of 15.7%, net of expenses, which equates to $16.4 billion of net investment income. This result exceeded the Plan’s absolute benchmark return of 6.6% by more than $9 billion. OMERS net assets grew to $121 billion as at December 31, 2021.
According to the OMERS:
"Four key factors drove the outperformance relative to our benchmark:
The portfolio of public equities returned 20.7%, reflecting a strong year in public markets.
The private equity businesses grew earnings, both organically and through acquisitions. Private Equity returned 25.8%, which reflects higher valuations across the portfolio, including Ventures and Growth Equity, and the sale of one of our European service businesses during the year.
The higher allocation to industrial real estate assets created value as demand grew for warehousing and logistics spaces, resulting from the strength of e-commerce. The real estate assets earned a 15.9% return and our real estate business, Oxford Properties, continued to expand its global footprint.
The infrastructure investments continued to deliver positive and consistent returns, earning 10.7% in 2021, underscoring the long-term strength in this asset class."
The OMERS 2021 Annual Report is now available for download here