Esg Investment Outcomes Performance Evaluation And Attribution

ESG strategies have experienced a massive inflow of capital over the past decade despite investors having little concrete evidence that ESG investing accomplishes its purported goals. It has also happened without investors having the information, tools, and methods needed to evaluate and communicate their specific ESG values, objectives, and preferences. Without evidence of efficacy and clearly articulated investment objectives, it is impossible for investors with ESG intent to know if they are getting what they are paying for, to distinguish between investment managers based on non-financial objectives, or to improve the likelihood of achieving positive ESG investing outcomes. This paper highlights key challenges faced by ESG investors and portfolio managers implementing ESG investment mandates. It then addresses these challenges focusing on relevant fund reporting, provides guidance on the information required to make informed ESG investing decisions, and proposes a performance evaluation and attribution framework to support the ESG investment management process.

This survey examines the vibrant academic literature on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing. While there is no consensus on the exact list of ESG issues, responsible investors increasingly assess stocks in their portfolios based on nonfinancial data on environmental impact (e.g., carbon emissions), social impact (e.g., employee satisfaction), and governance attributes (e.g., board structure). The objective is to reduce exposure to investments that pose greater ESG risks or to influence companies to become more sustainable. One active area of research at present involves assessing portfolio risk exposure to climate change. This literature review focuses on institutional investors, which have grown in importance such that they have now become the largest holders of shares in public companies globally. Historically, institutional investors tended to concentrate their ESG efforts mostly on corporate governance (the “G” in ESG). These efforts included seeking to eliminate provisions that restrict shareholder rights and enhance managerial power, such as staggered boards, supermajority rules, golden parachutes, and poison pills. Highlights from this section: · There is no consensus on the exact list of ESG issues and their materiality. · The ESG issue that gets the most attention from institutional investors is climate change, in particular their portfolio companies’ exposure to carbon risk and “stranded assets.” · Investors should be positioning themselves for increased regulation, with the regulatory agenda being more ambitious in the European Union than in the United States. Readers might come away from this survey skeptical about the potential for ESG investing to affect positive change. I prefer to characterize the current state of the literature as having a “healthy dose of skepticism,” with much more remaining to be explored. Here, I hope the reader comes away with a call to action. For the industry practitioner, I believe that the investment industry should strive to achieve positive societal goals. CFA Institute provides an exemplary case in its Future of Finance series (www.cfainstitute.org/research/future-finance). For the academic community, I suggest we ramp up research aimed at tackling some of the open questions around the pressing societal goals of ESG investing. I am optimistic that practitioners and academics will identify meaningful ways to better harness the power of global financial markets for addressing the pressing ESG issues facing our society.

This textbook provides the first holistic resource on Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) investing for undergraduate and graduate programs. It provides a thorough background and history of ESG investing, as well as cutting-edge industry developments, in a way that introduces the reader to the rapidly developing field of responsible investing. Beginning with a comprehensive background of ESG investing and the development of models measuring risk and return, the book then discusses the development of ESG risks, and provides an overview of ESG rating systems. The textbook also outlines the current position of ESG investing in portfolio management through granular analysis, provides insight into common investor concerns about ESG investments, discloses qualitative theories relevant to ESG investing, and reviews literature attempting to model ESG investment performance. Finally, the authors provide readers with a foundation on the development of financial models measuring risk and return, which will be useful for measuring the performance of ESG investments. With case studies from contributors around the world, this textbook is the first of its kind to truly provide a compelling blend of quantitative and qualitative analysis supporting the incorporation of ESG investment strategies into investment portfolios. Offering an excellent overview of the growing trends in ESG investing, as well as a close analysis of ESG theories and their practical application both today and in the future, this book will be a great resource for both undergraduates and graduate students.

A unique perspective on the implications of incorporating ESG considerations in systematic investing In Integrating ESG in Systematic Investing, a team of authors from Barclays’ top-ranked Quantitative Portfolio Strategy group (ranked #1 by Institutional Investor in its 2022 Global Fixed Income Research Survey in both the US and Europe) delivers an insightful and practical discussion of how to reflect ESG considerations in systematic investing. The authors offer a cross-asset class perspective—incorporating both credit and equity markets in the United States, Europe, and China—a unique coverage scope amongst books on this subject. They discuss the interaction between ESG ratings and various other security characteristics, suggest a methodology for isolating the ESG-specific risk premia, analyse the impact of an ESG tilt on systematic strategies and risk factors, and identify several ESG-based signals that are predictive of future performance. You’ll also discover: Analysis of companies in the process of improving their ESG ranking (“ESG improvers”) vs. firms with best-in-class ESG ratings A study using natural language processing (NLP) to predict changes in corporate ESG rankings from company job postings for sustainability-related positions In-depth explorations of ESG equity fund performance and flows and the information content of ESG ratings dispersion across several providers Perfect for portfolio managers including non-quantitative, fundamental investors, risk managers, and research analysts at financial institutions such as asset managers, pension funds, banks, sovereign wealth funds, hedge funds, and insurance companies, Integrating ESG in Systematic Investing is also a must-read resource for academics with a research interest in the performance and risk implications of ESG investing.

Investment Performance Attribution involves identifying and quantifying those activities that increase investment return above a given benchmark--and is the hottest topic in institutional investing today. Investment Performance Attribution is the first book to provide clear and in-depth coverage of how and when to use the varying forms of attribution. It makes necessarily high-level attribution mathematics accessible, and will become an essential reference for professional money managers and institutional investors.

Sustainable investing is a rapidly growing and evolving field. With investors expressing ever greater interest in environmental, social, and governance (ESG) metrics and reporting, companies face a sustainability imperative and the need to remake their business models to respond to an array of pressing issues including climate change, air and water pollution, racial justice, workplace diversity, economic inequality, privacy, corporate integrity, and good governance. From equities to fixed income and from private equity to impact-investing, investors of all kinds now want to understand which companies will be marketplace leaders in a business future redefined by sustainability. Thus, investment strategies, risk models, financial vehicles, applications, data, metrics, standards, and regulations are all changing rapidly around the world. In an effort to better understand the current status and movement of this dynamic field and to provide a practical reference for the growing pool of investors, financial advisors, companies, and academics seeking information on sustainable investing and ESG reporting, this edited book covers the latest trends, tools, and thinking. It showcases the work of authors from leading companies and academic institutions across a range of vital topics such as financial disclosure, portfolio assessment, ESG metrics construction, and law as well as regulation. Readers of the book will be better able to identify and address the hurdles to moving mainstream capital toward more sustainable companies, investments, and projects.

The objective of performance attribution is to explain portfolio performance relative to a benchmark, identify the sources of excess return, and relate those sources to active decisions by the portfolio manager. This review charts the development of attribution from its beginning with Fama decomposition in the 1970s, through its foundations in the 1980s, into its issues of multiperiod and multicurrency attribution in the 1990s, and ending on its more detailed models for fixed-income and risk-adjusted attribution in recent years. Types of attribution (including returns based, holdings based, and transaction based) are also discussed as is money-weighted attribution and developments associated with notional funds.

This study examines the recent literature on the expectations, beliefs and perceptions of investors who incorporate Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) considerations in investment decisions with the aim to generate superior performance and also make a societal impact. Through the lens of equilibrium models of agents with heterogeneous tastes for ESG investments, green assets are expected to generate lower returns in the long run than their non- ESG counterparts. However, at the short run, ESG investment can outperform non-ESG investment through various channels. Empirically, results of ESG outperformance are mixed. We find consensus in the literature that some investors have ESG preference and that their actions can generate positive social impact. The shift towards more sustainable policies in firms is motivated by the increased market values and the lower cost of capital of green firms driven by investors' choices.

A practitioner's guide to the role and implications of performance measurement and attribution analysis in asset management firms Practical Portfolio Performance Measurement and Attribution is a comprehensive reference and guide to the use and calculation of performance returns in the investment decision process. Focusing on real-world application rather than academic theory, this highly practical book helps asset managers and investors determine return on assets, analyse portfolio behaviour and improve performance. Author Carl R. Bacon clearly describes each of the methodologies used by performance analysts in today's financial environment whilst sharing valuable insights drawn from his experience as a Director of Performance Measurement & Risk Control. The third edition is revised to reflect recent developments in performance attribution and presentation standards. Fully up-to-date chapters cover the entire performance measurement process, including return calculations, attribution methodologies, risk measures, manager selection and presentation of performance information. Written by an acknowledged leader in global investment performance standards, performance attribution technique and risk measurement Aligns with the publication of the 2020 Global Investment Performance Standards (GIPS®) Explains the mathematical aspects of performance measurement and attribution in a clear, easy-to-understand manner Provides numerous practical and worked examples of attribution analysis and risk calculations supported by Excel spreadsheets Includes signposts for the future development of performance measurement Practical Portfolio Performance Measurement and Attribution, Third Edition, remains a must-have for performance analysts and risk controllers, portfolio managers, compliance professionals and all asset managers, owners, consultants and servicing firms.