Investments Institute

Tulane University’s professor of finance will share his entertaining views on the current economic trends and what they show for the future. Topics include:

• Inflation and interest rates
• Energy Sector outlook
• Globalization and supply chain issues.

Environmental, Social and Governance investing is nothing new in portfolios. In fact, some funds have been practicing one or all three of the areas of ESG for many years without the title of “ESG.” This session will discuss in depth:

• History of ESG and what it is today
• Impact investing
• Personalization of concepts
• Proxy voting
• What the regulations say today
• Fiduciary responsibility and risks.

As an alternative investment asset class, private assets—including private equity, private credit and private debt—are used to find that extra return you might not find in public equity markets. This session will look at:

• Private equity
• Private credit/debt
• Liquidity and contracts
• Secondary market
• Fee structures
• Tax considerations.

Achieving your fund’s investment strategies in the equity markets is no easy goal, especially from what 2022 showed us. Understanding the differences in the types of equities available and what strategies to take for each will help your fund meet its targets. Topics discussed will be:

• Large, mid and small cap historical returns
• Growth, value and core styles
• Rise of concentrated portfolios
• Understanding valuations
• Developing and emerging markets
• Currency.

For over a decade, fixed income investing has not had the attention of investors like it once did. However, with the current volatile equity market, is fixed income back in the spotlight?

• A look at what happened in 2022
• What is fixed income looking like today?
• How can funds prepare for the next cycle

What we learned from 2022 and the last decade, and how should a portfolio look today? Topics include:

• Capital market assumptions
• Investment policy
• Opportunities the market has created
• Tactics to consider.

Infrastructure has long been seen as a stable, lower-risk alternative income source. As 2022 showed everyone, rising interest rates, high inflation and historical demographic trend changes have made many investors reevaluate whether investing in infrastructure is right for them. This session will look at:

• Varying types of infrastructure
• What are the barriers to entry
• Liquidity of funds
• How to evaluate assets.

With the recent pandemic and current higher interest rates, real estate is having to adapt to the rapidly changing markets. This session will explore:

• Types of real estate
• Shifts in markets
• Alternatives to core real estate
• Growing risks
• Investment strategies
• Tax implications.

The concept of the three-legged stool to support participant retirement goals is seeing greater importance on personal savings. This session will look at how defined contribution plan design can help bolster one of the three legs of the stool. We will discuss:

• Target date plans
• Managed accounts
• Self-directed brokerage
• Plan design
• Managing risk.

The PBGC recently released investment guidelines for plans that received Special Financial Assistance (SFA) funds. This session will cover:

• Overview of SFA
• Investing the funds
• Changes in the investment rules
• How the SFA funds will work with your plan’s current
investments.