With over $100 billion in funds under management each, Hostplus and UniSuper have delivered positive returns in the financial year 2022–23.
Hostplus saw its MySuper Balanced option achieve an 8 per cent return in FY22–23.
Chief executive, David Elia, said the positive result came despite a backdrop of continued global challenges and reminded members that super is a “long-term game”.
Over a 10-year horizon, its MySuper Balanced option has returned 8.9 per cent per annum.
“We are all about choice and this is where Hostplus’ enviable product range comes into play for those members who want to make different investment choices, be it for risk, lower fees, or values-based investments – our strategy and offerings provide members with flexibility to invest as they see fit,” Elia added.
In comparison, Hostplus’ Indexed Balanced option delivered far more positive results at 12.3 per cent, which the fund attributed to the strong performance of equities this last year.
Chief investment officer, Sam Sicilia, noted: “Hostplus’ strong returns included low valuations for the fund’s private equity and tech, despite strong returns in both the domestic and global listed markets for tech stocks.”
In June, the super fund announced it would be discontinuing its single sector property and infrastructure investment options from 1 October 2023.
According to Sicilia, non-office property sub-sectors, such as medical offices and industrial property, have been growth sectors for the fund though commercial office space experiences a downturn.
The fund has been noted for having the highest percentage of unlisted assets of all major super funds at 51 per cent in its MySuper option.
“Our exposure to these non-office property assets, representing over 70 per cent of our total property portfolio, has minimised the impact of falls in office valuations on our property portfolio returns,” Sicilia stated.
Meanwhile, UniSuper delivered a solid 10.3 per cent return with its default Balanced option.
According to SuperRatings analysis, this puts the fund in fourth place in Balanced option performance, behind ESSSuper (13.3 per cent), Vision Super (11 per cent), and Brighter Super (10.6 per cent).
The fund said its portfolios are “well positioned” to deliver industry-leading value moving forward.
John Pearce, UniSuper’s chief investment officer, said: “While it was good to see the Balanced option hit double-digit returns for the financial year, our focus is always on the longer term.
“In that regard we are confident that current portfolio settings, with a quality bias and ample liquidity, places us in good stead to deliver on long-term objectives.”
