Out of the six balanced superannuation funds that have made a return this year only one was an industry superannuation fund, according to data.
FE Analytics data found within the Australian Superannuation universe, Australian Catholic Super Australian MySuper Balanced fund was the top performing fund at 3% since the start of 2020 to 30 June, 2020.
The fund was one of six that had made a return during the first half of 2020 while the rest were retail funds.
AMP SignatureSuper MySuper Macquarie Balanced Growth fund came second at 1.11%, followed by AMP SignatureSuper Macquarie Balanced Growth fund at 0.9%, Suncorp Brighter Super Personal Suncorp Multi-Manager Balanced at 0.82%, Suncorp Brighter Super Business Suncorp Multi-Manager at 0.82%, and AMP FLS and CS Macquarie Balanced Growth at 0.47%.
The balanced super sector average was a loss of 3.61%.
Top performing balanced super funds versus sector since start of 2020 to 30 June 2020
Source: FE Analytics
On the other end of the scale, ANZ Smart Choice Super OptiMix Balanced and CFS FC PersonalSuper FirstChoice MultiIndex Moderate funds were the worst performing fund over the same period both at a loss of 7.04%.
Over the longer term, two of the top five performing balanced funds were industry super funds and two were also sustainable funds.
The top performer was again Australian Catholic Super Australian Super Balanced option at 42.6% over the five years to 30 June, 2020.
This was followed by Suncorp Corporate Investment Super at 41.11%, AMP SignatureSuper MySuper Macquarie Balanced Growth at 38.9%, CareSuper Sustainable Balanced at 37.97%, and Australian Ethical Balanced Accumulation at 36.8%.
The sector average was 20.6%.
Top performing balanced super funds versus sector over the five years to 30 June 2020
Source: FE Analytics
The bottom performer over the same time period was OnePath OA Personal Super Onepath Balanced NEF at 11.6%.
Vanguard Super has reported strong returns across most of its investment options, attributed to a “low-cost, index-based approach”.
The fund has achieved double-digit returns amid market volatility, reinforcing the value of long-term investment strategies for its members.
Australian super funds notched a third consecutive year of strong returns, with the median balanced option delivering an estimated 10.1 per cent over the 2024-25 financial year, but an economist has warned that the rally may be harder to sustain as key risks gather pace.
AustralianSuper has reported a 9.52 per cent return for its Balanced super option for the 2024–25 financial year, as markets delivered another year of strong performance despite the complex investing environment.