UK – The recent asset allocation shift that saw the £4.2bn (€6.8bn) AstraZeneca pension fund reduce its equity holdings by five percent in favour of fixed income was not influenced by the Boots pension fund getting rid of its entire equity portfolios last October.

“The decision was taken before Boots announced their move,” says Nicki Mortimer, director of AstraZeneca’s UK pension fund. She adds that the trustees took the decision purely in line with market conditions and that it was more a question of fund maturity than radical overhaul of its asset allocation policy.

Mortimer confirms that the split is now 45% fixed income, 55% equities. Furthermore, the percentage change is considered to be small enough as not to upset the way the fund is run. “The change is pretty small and we won’t need to change asset managers or do anything drastic to adjust to the revised portfolio split,” she comments.

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