Ivy League Endowment Returns Ranged From 16.9% to 27.4% in Fiscal 2026, a 10.5-Point Gap, With Four of Eight Schools Above 23% and Four Below 20%

Columbia's report on 3 November completed the set: all eight Ivy League endowments have now published fiscal 2026 results for the year to 30 June 2026, and they fall into two camps. Four schools returned more than 23% and four returned less than 20%, with nothing in between. The gap from best to worst is 10.5 percentage points, from Penn's 27.4% down to Cornell's 16.9%.

The set

The returns were 27.4% at Penn, 27.1% at Harvard, 26.3% at Yale, 23.7% at Princeton, 19.6% at Brown, 18.3% at Columbia, 17.5% at Dartmouth and 16.9% at Cornell. The simple average of the eight is 22.1%, and the middle of the range, the average of the fourth and fifth schools, is 21.65%. The split is even by count: four of eight schools, or 50%, sit in each camp. The top four average 26.1% and the bottom four 18.1%, a gap of about 8 points between the group averages, which is wider than the gap inside either group.

Where the capital sits

By capital the picture is lopsided. The eight endowments hold a combined $246.9 billion at the year end, using each school's reported value at 30 June 2026. The top four hold $195.9 billion, or 79% of that, and the bottom four hold $51.0 billion, or 21%. Weighting each return by year-end value gives a combined return of about 24.5%, a rough measure that ignores flows during the year but shows that the large pools did better than the simple average suggests.

Who sits where

Penn reported a value of $31.1 billion, Harvard $68 billion, Yale $54.5 billion and Princeton $42.3 billion in the top camp. In the lower camp Brown reported $9.5 billion, Columbia $17.9 billion, Dartmouth $10 billion and Cornell $13.6 billion. Our earlier reporting covers the detail, including Dartmouth's 17.5% return and its weaker five-year figure and our longer look at Columbia's endowment and its caution on private valuations.

What it means for GPs

Treat the eight as two different audiences. A school returning above 26% may be rebalancing after a strong year, while a school below 20% may be more cautious about new commitments and more interested in liquidity. This is our reading of the spread, not a statement from any endowment. Before approaching one, check its latest annual statement for what it said about the private book, and ask whether its payout and distribution needs changed after a year in which returns differed this much. FundLinx members can see which endowments are allocating in your strategy, and our entry on the endowment explains the investor type.

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