Every year, the Trustee of the Abbott Laboratories Pension Fund (1966) (‘the Fund’) produces a Report and Accounts. This includes detailed information about how we look after the Fund and the performance of its assets, which are confirmed by an independent audit. It includes:
- changes in the membership numbers,
- the Fund’s investments and how they have performed,
- the income of the Fund, including contributions and investment income,
- outgoings, including members’ benefits and the Fund’s expenses.
All this can be reassuring on the diligence with which the Fund is being run.
We’ve put together an overview of some of the key figures from the report for the year ended 31 March 2024, which you can read below.
Membership
| 1 April 2023 | 31 March 2024 | |
|---|---|---|
| Active members | 578 | 537 |
| Deferred members | 2,246 | 2,185 |
| Pensioner members | 1,185 | 1,262 |
| Total | 4,009 | 3,984 |
Change in value of the Fund's assets
| Scheme year to 31 March 2023 | Scheme year to 31 March 2024 | |
|---|---|---|
| Value of the Fund at start of scheme year | £1,120,366,000 | £1,020,174,000 |
| Net returns on investments | (£89,627,000) | £131,347,000 |
| Income from contributions, transfers in and other income | £10,845,000 | £4,304,000 |
| Benefits paid to members and other expenditure | (£21,410,000) | (£17,769,000) |
| Net increase/ (decrease) during the year | (£100,192,000) | £117,882,000 |
| Total | £1,020,174,000 | £1,138,056,000 |
How the Fund assets were invested on 31 March 2024
The following table shows the value held with each investment manager at 31 March 2024.
| 2023 | 2024 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Investment manager | Asset class | £000 | % | £000 | % | Difference |
| Arrowstreet | Equities | 201,568 | 19.8% | 251,698 | 22.1% | 2.3% |
| Baillie Gifford | Equities | 104,507 | 10.2% | 116,997 | 10.3% | 0.1% |
| Dodge & Cox | Equities | 202,717 | 19.9% | 224,730 | 19.7% | (0.2%) |
| Legal & General | Index-linked Gilts | 228,797 | 22.4% | 268,487 | 23.6% | 1.2% |
| Legal & General | Sterling Liquidity Fund | 162 | ‹0.03% | 22,972 | 2.0% | 2.03% |
| Lothbury | Property | 36,346 | 3.6% | 31,952 | 2.8% | (0.8%) |
| M&G | Multi Asset Credit | 232,237 | 22.8% | 207,537 | 18.2% | (4.6%) |
The table below details the performance of the Fund’s investment managers for the one and three year periods ended 31 March 2024. Performance is shown after fees were deducted.
| Investment manager | Asset class | Year to 31 March 2024 Fund (%) | Year to 31 March 2024 Benchmark (%) | 3 years to 31 March 2024 Fund (%) | 3 years to 31 March 2024 Benchmark (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arrowstreet | Equities | 30.9 | 20.6 | 13.6 | 10.2 |
| Baillie Gifford | Equities | 25.2 | 20.6 | (2.1) | 10.2 |
| Dodge & Cox | Equities | 18.0 | 20.6 | 11.9 | 10.2 |
| Legal & General | Index-linked Gilts | (6.9) | (6.9) | (12.1) | (12.1) |
| Legal & General | Sterling Liquidity Fund | 5.2 | 5.2 | - | - |
| Lothbury | Property | (8.8) | (0.7) | (5.2) | 1.5 |
| M&G | Multi Asset Credit | 12.3 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 2.4 |
| Total Fund | 12.8 | 9.3 | 3.0 | 2.6 | |
Note: The total Fund and benchmark returns have been estimated by Aon. Benchmark returns have been calculated using actual asset splits.
The following table shows what class of assets are or were managed for the Fund by the various investment managers.
|
Cash A fund that invests in the short-term money markets such as bank deposits and Treasury Bills. |
Used in the Trustee's cashflow policy but not as a strategic investment |
|
Equities These are ordinary shares in the value of a company, which investors buy and sell on stock markets in the UK and overseas. |
Arrowstreet Baillie Gifford Dodge & Cox |
|
Index-linked gilts (bonds) A bond is a type of loan which pays interest. Index-linked gilts are bonds issued by the UK Government, with interest payments linked to inflation. |
Legal & General |
|
Liquidity Fund Invests in cash assets to provide capital stability and income similar to but generally more than investing in a bank account. |
Legal & General |
|
Multi Asset Credit A fund that invests in a range of different bond and debt investments (issued by governments, companies and other entities) with the aim of generating return through interest payments and capital appreciation. |
M&G |
|
Property Investment is predominantly in commercial property such as shops, warehouses and offices, rather than residential housing. |
Lothbury |
Find out more
If you would like a copy of the full report, get in touch with Polly Fontaine, our Pensions Officer. You can call her on 01628 774613 or email ukpensions@abbott.com
The 2022 actuarial valuation
Every three years, the Trustee of the Fund carries out an actuarial valuation. This is an in-depth look at the Fund’s finances. The Scheme Actuary looks at the value of the Fund’s assets and of the Fund’s liabilities for all members (active, deferred, and pensioners) to measure whether the Fund remains financially viable and what future level of employer contributions should be paid. The Fund does not have a shortfall, but if it did the actuarial valuation would include information about the plan to eliminate it.
The last actuarial valuation took place in 2022, a full copy of the valuation can be requested by contacting Polly Fontaine using the contact details above. The 2024 Summary Funding Statement summarises the results of the full valuation, and the annual updates as at 31 March 2023 and 31 March 2024.