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Canadian Money Saver publishes an
article, "Do-It-Yourself Ethical Investing
Pays," by Ron Robins. "Though DIY
sustainable-ethical investing requires some work it
can pay handsomely. The process is engaging and fun
too. But the skills to do it effectively can be more
quickly acquired with coaching from those
experienced in this work."
[COMMENTARY]
I wrote this article -- and offer
webinars and
tutorials on this subject too -- for individual
investors who want to have ownership and save on
fees in creating and managing a stock portfolio that
reflects their personal values.
Canadian Money Saver publishes an article,
"Do-It-Yourself Ethical Investing Pays," by Ron
Robins, September 2017, Canada.
Catching The Wave: The Spread of ESG in
Institutional Investment Portfolios.
"More than a quarter of North American institutions
use environmental, social and governance (ESG)
standards in their investment portfolios, and
approximately 60% of institutions that have not yet
incorporated ESG into their portfolios say they are
open to doing so in the future."
[COMMENTARY]
Their study provides some further insights into the
spread and utilization of ESG among institutional
money managers.
Catching The Wave: The Spread of ESG in
Institutional Investment Portfolios, press
release, September 19, 2017, Greenwich Associates,
USA.
LEGO Group Leads Global Ranking of Best
CSR Reputation. "Reputation Institute
has released the main findings of its 201 7 Global
CSR RepTrak® 100 report, including the list of the
companies considered as the most responsible
worldwide. The report is based on over 170,000
ratings from interviews with the public in the 15
largest economies (United Kingdom, Spain, Italy,
Germany, France, Russia, Brazil, Mexico, USA,
Canada, Japan, China, India, Australia and South
Korea)."
[COMMENTARY]
Their top five are LEGO, Microsoft, Google, Walt
Disney, and BMW. Full results
here.
Reputation Institute, September 12, 2017,
USA.
Ceres launches water use scorecards on
affected companies. "For food
companies, water management is a business imperative
like never before. And as risks of water scarcity
and pollution steadily increase, corporate leaders
must evaluate the most effective ways to water-proof
their business."
[COMMENTARY]
Ceres has created an impressive scorecard on how
food companies, in particular, use and manage their
water resources.
Feeding ourselves thirsty, September 2017,
Ceres, USA.
Big investors take aim at banks over
climate change risk. "A coalition of
institutional investors managing more than $1tn in
assets is demanding that 60 of the world’s largest
banks take action to protect the world from the
threat of catastrophic damage due to climate
change."
[COMMENTARY]
This was bound to happen -- and good that it has.
Financial institutions and companies not reporting
or allowing for climate change effects on their
businesses will likely see reduced investor interest
and possibly lower relative stock prices over time.
Big investors take aim at banks over climate change
risk, by Chris Flood, September 14, 2017,
Financial Times, UK.
Responsible Investment Week Canada, "make
money responsibly." October 23-27, 2017.
"Responsible Investment Week is dedicated to
education and awareness about responsible investment
(RI). The Responsible Investment Association (RIA)
is coordinating a week of events across Canada to
promote learning about environmental, social, and
corporate governance (ESG) issues that affect
investments."
[COMMENTARY]
All Canadian investors are encouraged to attend and
participate in RIA's Responsible Investment Week!
The event gets larger every year and the more people
that attend the greater the media coverage.
Responsible Investment Week Canada, "make money
responsibly." October 23-27, 2017, September 14,
2017, Responsible Investment Association, Canada.
US SIF Foundation Releases Resource Guide
For Retail Investors: "Getting Started in
Sustainable and Impact Investing."
"This resource is a concise guide for retail,
non-accredited investors exploring investment
options such as mutual funds, ETFs, and direct
ownership of stocks, as well as information on
seeking professional investment help."
[COMMENTARY]
A basic guide for novice sustainability focused
investors. It's a useful adjunct to my
Tutorial: Creating A Profitable Personal
Values-Based Portfolio.
US SIF Foundation Releases Resource Guide For Retail
Investors: "Getting Started in Sustainable and
Impact Investing," press release, September 14,
2017, US SIF, USA.
Big investors to put more money into
tackling climate change. "More than
two-thirds of institutional investors are planning
to increase investments related to tackling climate
change, according to a new survey that suggests
'green finance' is moving from the margins to the
mainstream of global markets.... in a study
commissioned by HSBC, will add weight to calls from
Mark Carney, governor of the Bank of England, and
others for greater disclosure of 'climate risks' in
the corporate and financial sectors."
[COMMENTARY]
How many companies in the insurance, utilities and
other hurricane affected industries in Texas and
Florida have put as potential liabilities on their
balance sheets potential hurricane damages? Though
such costs are difficult to assess, but, with
climate warming/change becoming increasingly costly
for businesses, perhaps investors need to ask such
questions more vigorously. Companies refusing to
acknowledge such costs might be shunned by investors
in years to come!
Big investors to put more money into tackling
climate change, by Andrew Ward, September 11,
2017, Financial Times, UK.
Investors Can Be Ethical and Still Beat
the Market, Study Says. "Ethical fund
managers don’t have to be envious of the
market-beating returns of so-called sin stocks. They
should be able to match them without dabbling in
vice, according to a study in the Fall edition of
the Journal of Portfolio Management. The study
debunks the popular theory that shares in the
alcohol, tobacco, gaming, and weapons industries
outperform because investors shun them, enabling
those with fewer moral scruples to earn a
'reputation risk premium.'”
[COMMENTARY]
So 'sin' stocks only outperform if their profits and
investment also outperform. This is an important
message, but one I feel will take time to be
accepted. Nonetheless, for ethical investors, it's
heartwarming to see the results of this study.
Also, as government health care costs continue to
explode, many sin sectors such as tobacco and
alcohol will continue to be taxed higher and higher,
thereby continually eroding the profitability of
companies in these sectors. Thus, their future
outperformance becomes questionable. See actual
study
here.
Investors Can Be Ethical and Still Beat the Market,
Study Says, by Cormac Mullin, September 11,
2017, Bloomberg, USA.
Rising carbon prices could slash company
profits. "The impact of climate change
could hit global profits just as hard as the
financial crisis and Schroders have launched a new
tool to help investors work out which companies will
suffer most."
[COMMENTARY]
This is an important article to read for all ethical
investors. Such research will likely become ever
more important to investors as the world grows
increasingly concerned about climate change.
Rising carbon prices could slash company profit,
by Michelle McGagh, September 6, 2017, Citywire
Money, UK.
Sustainable Signals: New Data from the
Individual Investor--Morgan Stanley.
"80% [of investors] are interested in sustainable
investments that can be customized to meet their
interests and goals."
[COMMENTARY]
Morgan Stanley's Institute for Sustainable Investing
has published the results of its second investors'
survey. Unsurprisingly, the results show a growing
interest in sustainable investing-- especially by
millennials.
(Again, for individual investors interested in a
do-it-yourself approach, you'll find participating
in my free
DIY Ethical-Sustainable Investing Webinars very
helpful.)
Sustainable Signals: New Data from the Individual
Investor, Morgan Stanley Institute for
Sustainable Investing, September 2017.
Opinion: The pros and cons of ethical
debt instruments. "Innovative debt
instruments help to harness the powerful role of
capital markets and can connect more savings with
international development priorities such as the
SDGs. As investor interest continues to soar, they
could help move the world from billions to trillions
of dollars in financing for the SDGs [Sustainable
Development Goals]."
[COMMENTARY]
A fine article about ethical-sustainable debt by an
advisor to the UNDP.
Opinion: The pros and cons of ethical debt
instruments, by Gail Hurley, September 4, 2017,
Devex, USA.
Pension funds need to look beyond ESG
fund ratings. "These environmental,
social and governance (ESG) ratings 'do not tell the
whole story' and each set can provide very different
conclusions for the same companies, the investment
manager [Kames] argued."
[COMMENTARY]
I think most investors are aware of the above.
That's why some might want to add a do-it-yourself
approach and hence my new and free
Introductory DIY Ethical-Sustainable Investing
Webinars. The next webinars are Saturday,
September 30, 4 pm EST and Tuesday, October 10, 7 pm
EST. All are welcome.
Pension funds need to look beyond ESG fund ratings,
by James Phillips, August 31, 2017, Professional
Pensions, UK.
Why FAs Are Still Reluctant to Jump on
ESG Bandwagon. "Asset managers and
major brokerages think there’s big money to be made
shilling these funds to advisors, with the likes of
BlackRock, Bank of America and UBS highlighting the
growing acceptance and mainstream popularity of SRI
and 'impact investing' strategies. But many advisors
don’t seem to be biting. A survey of advisors from
the Financial Times’ list of top RIAs last year
showed just 4% of firms were focused on SRI
opportunities."
[COMMENTARY]
Advisors in this piece argue there's little demand
by clients for SRI products. However, I wonder if
they even ask their clients about potential interest
in SRI/ESG investing? In most investor-advisor
surveys the advisors fail to ask that question.
Why FAs Are Still Reluctant to Jump
on ESG
Bandwagon,
by Murray Coleman, August 16, 2017,
Financial Advisor, USA.
The Carbon Clean 200 2017 Q3 Update is
now available. "A growing movement of
investors representing more than $5.2tn in assets
under management have signed a pledge to divest some
portion of their fossil fuel holdings. But where to
invest this capital?
The Clean200 list ranks the largest publicly
listed companies by their total clean energy
revenues, with environmental, social, and governance
screens to help ensure the companies are indeed
building the infrastructure and services needed for
the 'Great Energy Transition' in a just and
equitable way. Notably, this new report highlights
the fact that clean energy investments greatly
outperform stagnating fossil fuel stocks."
[COMMENTARY]
The Clean 200 is an important listing for ethical
investors of the leading carbon clean
companies globally. Perhaps one of the most
surprising findings is that China leads with 68
companies, double that of the USA!
Click here for
The Carbon Clean 200 2017 Q3 Update, August 15,
2017, Corporate Knights/AS YOU SOW.
Millennials are driving a $9 trillion
change in investing. "Millennials are
driving the nearly $9 trillion sustainable investing
market, according to a survey of 1,000 investors by
Morgan Stanley's Institute for Sustainable
Investing."
[COMMENTARY]
Morgan Stanley's research confirms the results of
other surveys. (And still, too many advisors and
brokers aren't aware of this.)
Millennials are driving a $9 trillion change in
investing, by Frank Chaparro, August 10, 2017,
Business Insider, USA.
20 Undervalued, Sustainable Stocks --
Morningstar. "We screened the
Morningstar US Sustainability Index to find some
undervalued stocks that score well on ESG metrics.
Sustainability assessments are provided to
Morningstar by researcher Sustainalytics (of which
Morningstar has a 40% ownership stake)."
[COMMENTARY]
I'm delighted to see that Morningstar is starting to
freely share some of the individual Sustainalytics
stock ratings. This is good news for all investors
who don't have access to Sustainalytics individual
stock ratings' services.
20 Undervalued, Sustainable Stocks -- Morningstar,
by Karen Wallace, August 9, 2017, Morningstar, USA.
The race to embrace ESG ratings.
"Major investment firms are snapping up
environmental, social and governance (ESG) ratings
companies at a rapid clip — three hookups within
just the past year."
[COMMENTARY]
It's to be expected that many of the rising ESG
raters would be acquired by somewhat related and
established firms. It demonstrates ESG's
coming-of-age. Is it good or bad for investors? Only
in five, ten, or more years will we know.
The race to embrace ESG ratings, by Anya
Khalamayzer, August 10, 2017, GreenBiz, USA.
More Evidence of Solid Performance From
Sustainable Funds. "Investors in funds
that incorporate environmental, social, and
governance factors into their process appear not to
suffer a performance penalty."
[COMMENTARY]
Morningstar's Jon Hale has another insightful post
reviewing the recent performance of ESG funds. And
he says these funds continue to demonstrate good
relative performance.
More Evidence of Solid Performance From Sustainable
Funds, Jon Hale, August 3, 2017, Morningstar,
USA.
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