Recently I asked my assistant John to pull up Harvard Endowment’s 13F filing for Q4 of 2010 and compare it to that for Q4 of 2009 (shown in table below).

Apparently, Harvard Endowment’s year-end position in 2010 had changed significantly from that of 2009. The way I see it, there are three significant changes:

1. At the end of 2009, Harvard Endowment was extremely bullish on emerging markets; the top 10 positions were emerging market positions. That number was reduced to 5 at the end of 2010. On top of that, the size of each emerging market position has been reduced. Take China for example; the value of shares of FXI was reduced from 365k to 203k.

2. At the end of 2010, Harvard Endowment was bullish on US equities: 5 of the top 10 positions are US stocks. They are ACL, PEB, NAL, Q, BEE. In addition, the iShares S&P 500 index ETF IVV came from nowhere to take the 13th spot.

3. At the end of 2010, Harvard Endowment also seemed to be more bullish on commodities. The S&P GSCI commodity index fund GSG rose to the 12^th spot. Many oil-related stocks also have risen in their allocation weights.

It’s important not to read too much into these changes. However, if you have a knack for following smart money, there is no smarter money than Harvard and Yale Endowments.

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