Over the financial year, Core Pool, the default MySuper option delivered 7.25 per cent and over the 10-year period delivered 9.06 per cent returns.
The target investment objective of Core Pool is CPI + 3.5 per cent and, according to chief investment office Sonya Sawtell-Rickson, the recent result was an example of how the fund balances the return needs with defensive strategies.
“Core Pool is where most HESTA members have their super invested, so it’s important that we’re appropriately managing risk as well as achieving strong, competitive, long-term returns,” Ms Sawtell-Rickson said.
The diversified approach of HESTA’s core pool would continue to deliver long-term performance while providing appropriate protections, said Ms Sawtell-Rickson.
“The balanced, diversified approach of Core Pool aims to deliver long-term investment performance across a range of market conditions, while providing appropriate downside protection, as we believe that this will, over time, make the biggest difference to members’ retirement savings.”
Ms Sawtell-Rickson’s statement was backed by Rainmaker’s RMetric Mysuper report, which found Core Pool rated among the top 10 MySuper investment options for performance on a risk-adjusted basis.
The financial year was driven by strong Australian equities return, but the standout was the fund’s socially responsible investment option Eco Pool, said Ms Sawtell-Rickson.
“Eco Pool is this year’s standout, achieving a return of 11.03 per cent.
“This strong result is driven by the industry-leading responsible investment expertise we’ve developed over many years and underpins the strong, long-term relationships we’ve built with specialist managers as a result,” said Ms Sawtell-Rickson.
It’s another year of strong returns for Eco Pool, which identifies investments across both ESG and financial factors and has fossil fuel, tobacco and uranium exclusions.
