The mid-sized University of Oregon endowment beat the performance of some of the bigger funds in fiscal 2016, thanks in part to investments in private equity and real estate. The $755 million endowment said it earned 2.5 percent in the year through June 30, the largest investment gain by U.S. college endowments reporting so far. At least 11 U.S. universities with assets of more than $1 billion had declines for the fiscal year. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology bucked the trend, posting a 0.8 percent gain on its $13.2 billion endowment.