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IMCO posts a -8.1% return in 2022; outperforms benchmark

Positive net value add of 0.4% generated over past three years, despite challenging market conditions

TORONTO (April 13, 2023) – The Investment Management Corporation of Ontario (IMCO) today announced that the weighted average net return of its clients' portfolios was -8.1% for the year that ended December 31, 2022, compared to a consolidated benchmark return of -8.4%. IMCO generated 0.3 percentage points of net value add (NVA) in 2022. Since inception (or over the three years since assets have been managed according to IMCO strategies) the annualized return was 2%, compared to a consolidated benchmark return of 1.6%, representing 0.4 percentage points in net value add. IMCO's assets under management sat at $73.3 billion at the end of 2022.

IMCO's clients are public-sector entities, each with their own unique investment horizon and tolerance for risk. Therefore, their results are different both in absolute terms and NVA due to broad differences in asset mix and maturity of their respective strategies. The range of returns across IMCO's client portfolios was -9.1% to 1.6% in 2022.

QUOTES

"Although 2022 was the most turbulent year for markets in recent memory, we outperformed our benchmark and delivered added value for the third straight year, reaffirming the effectiveness of our long-term approach to helping clients build resilient portfolios," said Bert Clark, President and CEO of IMCO.

We witnessed an unusually large dispersion of returns across pension funds and asset managers in 2022, where funds with higher allocations to private assets typically posted higher returns," said Clark. "We continue to help many of our clients increase their allocations to private assets and to leverage their longer investment time horizon, as well as our strategic relationships and direct investment capabilities."

"2022 was a challenging year and we were certainly disappointed in these returns. We remain focused on our strategy for navigating short-term turbulence by maintaining discipline in executing our long-term investment strategy, systematic rebalancing, and effective liquidity management to capitalize on investment opportunities arising from temporary dislocations," said Rossitsa Stoyanova, Chief Investment Officer of IMCO.

"We continue to increase our private market exposure alongside our strategic partners, which was a huge returns' driver for us in 2022," said Stoyanova. "On the other hand, our absolute returns' performance was driven mainly by losses in public equities and fixed income, as both public markets and bonds took an unprecedented hit."

As we move forward, responsible investing and ESG integration will continue to play a growing role in our strategies. We believe that companies that strategically manage material ESG risks and turn them into opportunities will outperform their peers in the years to come and understand the importance making this a priority for IMCO," added Stoyanova.

2022 HIGHLIGHTS

  • Generated 0.3 percentage points of value add for clients in 2022.
  • Over three years, achieved 0.4 percentage points of value add for clients.
  • Closed 12 private equity direct and co-investments totaling over $500 million; committed more than $2 billion to strategic partners.
  • Committed over $2 billion to new managers in our global credit portfolio, including new exposure to actively managed public credit.
  • Released Climate Action Plan, IMCO's road map to achieving Net Zero by 2050.
  • Published a comprehensive "World View," which detailed IMCO's perspectives on major global themes and their investment implications in the next five to 10 years.
  • Approved new Five-year Strategic Plan for the period 2023 to 2027.

2022 KEY TRANSACTIONS

Private Equity:
Closed 12 private equity direct and co-investments, focusing on recession resilient businesses; committed more than $2 billion to strategic partners.

  • 123Dentist: Co-invested alongside existing strategic partners, Peloton Capital and KKR, in a Canadian dental support organization, as part of its merger with Altima Dental.
  • CDK Global Inc.: Invested with a new strategic partner, Brookfield Capital Partners, in a leading software provider to North American auto dealerships.
  • Trinity Life Sciences: Co-invested alongside Kohlberg & Company in a company that helps bring new drugs to market by providing consulting and analytics services.
  • Apax Global Impact Fund I: Committed $100 million to our first private equity investment in an impact fund that focuses on themes that include environment and resources, health and wellness, social and economic mobility, and technology businesses that enable positive societal and environmental impact.

Infrastructure:
Completed two direct investments, committed to two fund managers, and completed pooling.

  • DataBank: Invested US$450 million in a leading U.S. digital infrastructure operator, in partnership with global infrastructure investors.
  • Macquarie GIG Energy Transition Solutions Fund: Committed to invest $455 million to accelerate IMCO's investments in the global energy transition.
  • Antin Fund V: Committed to invest $552 million, which will target sectors in which Antin has established operations and significant expertise, including transport, energy and environment, telecom and social infrastructure.
  • Infrastructure Pool: IMCO completed its first private market pool, which manages approximately $8.4 billion of client assets, and enables clients to access this asset class efficiently.

Global Credit:
Established over $2 billion to new managers in 2022 and updated the credit strategy to increase allocation to non-investment grade credit, private credit and increased internalization.

  • Actively managed public credit: Invested US$1 billion to two of the world's leading global credit managers, Loomis, Sayles & Co. and Beach Point Capital Management. This provides IMCO clients with access to investment grade debt, high-yield bonds, structured credit and leveraged loans.
  • Carlyle Credit Opportunities Fund III: Committed up to US$200 million to access special situations credit and opportunities fueled by a rapidly shifting macroeconomic environment.
  • Blackstone Green Private Credit Fund III: Committed up to US$300 million in a fund that will provide flexible credit capital to companies and assets in renewable energy, the energy transition, and climate change solutions.
  • Brookfield Infrastructure Debt Fund III: Committed up to US$300 million in a fund that will add incremental yield and diversification through exposure to hard assets with contracted cash flows (utilities, renewable power, transportation, midstream energy) outside North America.
  • Ares' Infrastructure Debt Fund V: Committed up to US$300 million to help address the substantial gap between planned and required investment to improve or replace aging infrastructure in developed markets.

Real Estate:
Diversified the real estate portfolio and committed US$980 million to industrial, life sciences, property technology and multi-residential investments, alongside key strategic partners.

  • The Fifth Wall Climate Tech Fund: Committed to investing US$50 million in a fund that aims to decarbonize the real estate industry through new technologies developed by venture capitalist.
  • Tishman Speyer Separately Managed Account 2.0: Committed an additional US$500 million to invest in strategic value-add and build-to-core opportunities, as part of a portfolio of modern assets in office, mixed-use and multi-residential sectors in major U.S. markets.
  • Tishman Speyer Proptech Venture fund: US$30 million committed to a fund that invests in early-stage companies with technologies intended to improve efficiencies in real estate and the construction processes (not specific to climate).
  • WPT Industrial Joint Venture: Committed an additional US$400 million to a portfolio of industrial properties in strategic U.S. logistics markets through development, redevelopment, and value-add strategies.

PORTFOLIO PERFORMANCE BY ASSET CLASS
2022 Net Investments and Rates of Return (As of Dec. 31, 2022)

Asset Class Net Investments
($ billions)
1-Year Return (Percentage) 3-Year Return (Percentage)
Actual Benchmark NVA4 Actual Benchmark NVA4
Public Equities $18.6 (13.5%) (11.9%) (1.6%) 3.6% 4.5% (0.9%)
Fixed Income $14.9 (19.2%) (19.1%) (0.1%) (4.8%) (4.8%) 0.0
Real Estate1 $10.7 (0.3%) 12.0% (12.3%) (0.3%) 2.6% (3.0%)
Global Infrastructure $8.6 7.4% (3.7%) 11.1% 7.0% 1.7% 5.3%
Global Credit $6.8 (7.7%) (12.8%) 5.1% 1.8% (2.1%) 3.9%
Public Market Alternatives $4.9 1.9% 3.6% (1.7%) 2.4% 1.8% 0.6%
Private Equity $5.9 12.0% (9.1%) 21.1% 21.4% 5.1% 16.3%
Money Market and Other2 $1.4 - - - - - -
Leverage3 ($2.7) - - - - - -
Total $69.1 (8.1%) (8.4%) 0.3% 2.0 1.6% 0.4%

1Real Estate is net of certain assets (mortgages) and investment-related liabilities (debentures).

2Money Market & Other also includes other assets and strategies for portfolio rebalancing and asset allocation purposes and are included in the total return.

3Leverage employed by IMCO's clients as part of their strategic asset allocation is applied at the total portfolio level rather than within a specific asset class.

4Net value add (NVA) is the difference between investment returns of an asset class, net of all direct and indirect costs, and its respective investment policy statement (IPS) benchmark.

2022 Annual Report

View 2022 Annual Report


ABOUT IMCO

The Investment Management Corporation of Ontario (IMCO) manages $73.3 billion of assets on behalf of our clients. Designed exclusively to drive better investment outcomes for Ontario's broader public sector, IMCO operates under an independent, not-for-profit, cost recovery structure. We provide leading investment management services, including portfolio construction advice, better access to a diverse range of asset classes and sophisticated risk management capabilities. As one of Canada's largest institutional investors, we invest around the world and execute large transactions efficiently. Our scale gives clients access to a well-diversified global portfolio, including sought-after private and alternative asset classes. Follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter @imcoinvest.