In the universe of investment management firms similar to Woodstock, we were an early adopter of the Global Investment Performance Standard (“GIPS”). We decided to have a large composite be our flagship:[1] our Growth Composite, which has covered over 80% of assets under management at Woodstock for 20 years. Clients included in the Growth Composite range from grandparents to grandchildren and include those drawing from their account and those accumulating. Most are taxable accounts. On June 30, 2025, we reached 20 years of performance recording under GIPS.
Against its benchmark,[2] the Growth Composite outperformed for 20, 15, 10, 5, 3 and 1 year(s) by 39, 104, 129, 309, 257 and 86 basis points, respectively. The Growth Composite’s performance net of fees compared to the benchmark is -70, -9, +17, +193, +140 and -26 basis points for each period, respectively. We thank all the portfolio managers over those time periods for a very successful effort. A former President of Woodstock, Pete Simpson, points out that, although each portfolio manager at Woodstock has autonomy in making investment decisions for their clients, they’ve all operated from a Monitor List and are in constant dialogue with each other.
We also compared the equity component of our Growth Composite to the S&P 500 over those same time periods. For 20 years, the Growth Composite equity component performance was 10.72 percent and the S&P 500’s was 10.72 percent. For 15, 10, 5, 3 and 1 year periods the Growth Composite’s gross performance outperformed the S&P 500 by 16, 31, 124, 64 and 8 basis points, respectively. Net of fees, the performance compared to the benchmark was -110, -99, -82, +7, -57 and -107 basis points, respectively.[3] When we look around the investment world at how clients of other investment management firms have done or at major institutions using the Endowment Model, we are very proud of the service we have provided to our clients. Past performance is not an indicator of future performance, however.
Even at the same performance level, it is useful for clients to understand that our ability to use tax-loss selling adds appreciably, if in a hard-to-measure way, to performance. Tax-loss selling is very hard to do successfully with pooled investment products. And, probably, most importantly, our clients own the assets in their portfolios and are not merely the creditor of the real owner as they would be in a pooled investment product.
We have a fledgling marketing effort ongoing and its tagline is “Ask me about 10.72%.” Test your portfolio manager, test your friends. For those clients who’ve been with Woodstock for 20 years or less, good choice!
Private Equity Warning Signals
On private equity, there are two more warning shots. First, Moody’s Ratings says, “Wall Street’s push to sell private-equity and private-debt funds to individual investors risks overheating financial markets and back-firing on firms launching the funds.”[4] The legal profession agrees. “Putting private equity into Americans’ 401(K) accounts could set off a wave of lawsuits from class action attorneys who specialize in suing companies over retirement plan fees.”[5] Second, where is private debt today? “With interest rates higher today, some buyout targets are struggling to service debts. Private lenders that backed them have quietly restructured loans.”[6]
An Idea and a Quip
Finally, one investing idea and one political quip. Investment sages like to use military analogies. One commentator on war games believes that “card games are better models (than board games: chess) because vital information is always concealed by the fog of war and the deception of opponents.”[7] Hopefully in investing, we only have to worry about the fog.
The recent Democratic primary for Mayor of New York City brought forth this remembrance: “Former Mayor Ed Koch’s retort in 1989 upon losing re-election and refusing to run again: ‘The people have spoken…and they must be punished.’”[8]
We know that you are the most valuable business development tool that we have. Your referral of a friend, colleague or family member to us is the most important way that we grow. We thank you for your support and want you to know that we are dedicated to serving your best interest.
— William H. Darling, Chairman & CEO
— Adrian G. Davies, CFA — President