Key Takeaways
- • Harvard University and the University of North Carolina system reported strong endowment returns, driven partly by investments in AI and now-public SpaceX, according to the Wall Street Journal.
- • Harvard Management Company disclosed a $2.2 billion stake in SpaceX, held as 12,935,100 Class A shares valued at about $2.21 billion as of June 30, making it the endowment's largest publicly disclosed holding.
- • One university endowment gained 27%, its biggest return since 2021, boosted by a SpaceX position assembled between 2020 and 2021.
- • Thoma Bravo-backed Proofpoint proposed a take-private acquisition of publicly traded Varonis.
- • Higher borrowing costs are weighing on CoreWeave, underscoring the strains facing leveraged corners of the AI trade.
Summary
Colleges and universities are facing demographic shifts, regulatory pressure and questions about their independence, but several have continued to post strong investment performance. According to the Wall Street Journal's Juliet Chung, Harvard University and the University of North Carolina system are among the institutions reporting strong returns, driven partly by investments in artificial intelligence and in SpaceX, which has since gone public.
Harvard Management Company, which oversees the university's endowment, held 12,935,100 SpaceX Class A shares valued at about $2.21 billion as of June 30, according to disclosures summarized in publisher coverage. The stake, reported at roughly $2.2 billion, is larger than the endowment's other publicly traded holdings combined. Separately, one university endowment reported a 27% gain, its strongest return since 2021, boosted by a SpaceX position it assembled between 2020 and 2021. Coverage also notes that several university endowments gained SpaceX exposure indirectly through venture firms such as Founders Fund.
Elsewhere in the private markets newsletter, WSJ Pro Cybersecurity's James Rundle examined Thoma Bravo-backed Proofpoint's proposed take-private of Varonis, which would move the publicly traded cybersecurity company into private ownership. Separately, Journal reporting highlighted how higher borrowing costs have strained CoreWeave, illustrating the financing challenges facing certain segments of the AI infrastructure trade.
Harvard Management Company, which oversees the university's endowment, held 12,935,100 SpaceX Class A shares valued at about $2.21 billion as of June 30, according to disclosures summarized in publisher coverage. The stake, reported at roughly $2.2 billion, is larger than the endowment's other publicly traded holdings combined. Separately, one university endowment reported a 27% gain, its strongest return since 2021, boosted by a SpaceX position it assembled between 2020 and 2021. Coverage also notes that several university endowments gained SpaceX exposure indirectly through venture firms such as Founders Fund.
Elsewhere in the private markets newsletter, WSJ Pro Cybersecurity's James Rundle examined Thoma Bravo-backed Proofpoint's proposed take-private of Varonis, which would move the publicly traded cybersecurity company into private ownership. Separately, Journal reporting highlighted how higher borrowing costs have strained CoreWeave, illustrating the financing challenges facing certain segments of the AI infrastructure trade.
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