The endowment of Princeton University returned 23.7% in fiscal 2026. Assets managed by the Princeton University Investment Co. rose to an all-time high of $42.3 billion, up from $36.4 billion at the end of the prior fiscal year.
The endowment returned 11% in fiscal 2025. Over the past five, 10 and 20 years, the endowment had returned 6.7%, 11% and 9.7%, respectively.
In February, the university reduced its long-term-return assumption to 8% from 10.2% as it refocused its investment strategy amidst growing headwinds for higher education institutions.
“That shift is necessary for multiple reasons, including because it will help Princeton to stand strong for its defining principles and against rising threats to academic freedom,” Princeton President Christopher Eisgruber wrote in his annual state-of-the-university letter in February. “We face political threats to our financial model along with the economic ones.”
Last year, the endowment received $218 million in contributions with donor restrictions and $98 million without. The endowment paid $1.8 billion last fiscal year for operating expenses.
Princeton, like many of its peers, likely saw strong returns from exposure to SpaceX and the artificial intelligence theme. Peer institutions have reported double digit returns, including Stanford University (31.7%), Harvard University (27.1%) and Brown University (19.6%).
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Princeton University Slashes Endowment’s Long-Term Return Assumption to 8% |
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Princeton Endowment Returns 11% in Fiscal 2025 |
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