ESG

Stewart Investors is among the world’s leading ESG or responsible investment firms, yet a series of name and ownership changes have somewhat hidden this specialist investment firm. Originally part of the Colonial First State Global Asset Management (CFSGAM) stable, Stewart is now owned by First Sentier Investors, which itself is a subsidiary of Japanese investment…

US$429 billion* multi-asset manager Neuberger Berman is ramping up pressure on both sides of capital markets with its NB Votes campaign. The group, which was founded eight decades ago, is adopting a more transparent and potentially powerful approach to ‘engagement’ with the companies in which they invest client’s money. In a recent paper prepared by…

Australia’s longest standing responsible investment firm, Australian Ethical, recently combined with research house, Investment Trends, to survey investors on their ESG views. The survey covered 2,854 investors and 321 financial advisers, all of whom are based in Australia. Despite the growing popularity of ESG strategies and headlines being dominated by “green-focused” policies in the US…

Specialist equity manager Perennial Value Management last week announced the launch of a dedicated investment unit or ’boutique’ within their growing stable of high performing strategies. The group launched Perennial Better Future, a new business that will focus solely on developing and managing the group’s ESG strategies. The group, which managed the Better Future Trust,…

Stephen Bruce is a director, portfolio manager and head of research at Perennial Value. He joined as an equities analyst in April 2000 and was promoted to the role of research coordination/senior equities analyst and assumed the role of deputy portfolio manager for the Perennial Value Shares for Income Trust in 2006. In 2011, he…

The United States’ re-signing of the Paris Climate Agreement under President Biden, combined with a strengthening commitment on carbon emission targets from China, “sets the stage for a globally coordinated move away from fossil fuels.” That’s the expectation according to Ganesh Suntharam, chief investment officer of Redpoint Investment Management. Putting the ESG trend to the…

Following on from the Inside Network’s ESG Masterclass recently, specialist investment manager Martin Currie is fast becoming a climate change leader, through its active ESG investing approach, together with a series of new initiatives that were announced yesterday. These initiatives have significantly enhanced the company’s analysis of environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors. Martin Currie…

Australian Ethical, which is already the equal-largest manager of specialist ESG-related funds in Australia, alongside Vanguard, is now aiming to be among the largest of all managers with Australian businesses operating in the wholesale and retail space. And it is hoping technology will help. The manager (ASX: AEF) has partnered with a specialist start-up Alta…

News broke this week that one of Vanguard’s popular ESG or Environment, Social and Governance-focused strategies may not have been as true to label as one would expect. According to reports and the group’s website, the benchmark index tracked by the fund did not measure up to the name. Holding 4,500 individual fixed income securities,…

According to US$3.3 trillion ($4.3 trillion) asset manager, Fidelity International, companies with strong ESG characteristics outperformed in 2020, and should be expected to continue delivering strong returns into the future. That said, significant work lies ahead as the global economy moves towards a more ‘sustainable’ footing with asset managers central to this process. “Engagement” has…