LA Water & Power Pension Adds $150M to PE, Real Estate

The Los Angeles Water & Power Employees’ Retirement Plan committed $150 million to private equity and real estate strategies, splitting the capital evenly between a healthcare-focused buyout fund and a last-mile industrial real estate vehicle, according to recently released documents.

The $21 billion pension reported annualized gains of more than 12% for the year through March 31, with private equity delivering a 12.4% annualized IRR through year-end 2025 and real estate up nearly 4% in 2025 after finishing 2024 flat. Both programs are overseen by StepStone Group.

The $75 million private equity commitment went to Water Street Healthcare Partners VI, a Chicago-based fund targeting investments of $25 million to $175 million in healthcare services, medical products and diagnostics, and specialty pharmaceutical companies. Water Street closed Fund VI earlier this year at $1.9 billion and has completed more than 180 investments, building more than 48 healthcare companies since inception.

The remaining $75 million went to Longpoint Fund IV, a closed-end non-core real estate fund targeting small to medium-size last-mile infill industrial assets in dense U.S. population centers. The commitment extends an existing relationship — LA Water & Power invested in Longpoint’s two prior funds in 2021 and 2023.

The pension’s $2.5 billion real estate program is currently 40% allocated to industrial assets and 28% to residential, with its best recent performance in Asia real estate, U.S. logistics, and real estate credit.

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