5 Year Analysis of Company ESG Ratings Verses Financial Performance

Environmental Social Governance adds a new dimension to investing by targeting companies that pursue ethical policies and practices outside of normal business operations. However, there is a lack of information regarding the viability of such investing tactics. To dissolve the ambiguity associated with the lack of information, this thesis aims to compile the ESG ratings currently associated with companies and to measure their stock market performance relative to the overall market as well as individual sectors. The primary method for researching this topic involves finding the holding period returns of every company with an ESG rating in the past 5-years. With the data a linear model will indicate the overall impact of ESG ratings on holding period returns. This information will then allow a conclusion to be made about the viability of ESG ratings as an indicator of company stock performance. Mixed results are anticipated and accounted for by measuring specific industries that may be more capable than others of implementing strong ESG policies while performing better financially