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A growing body of research has centered on theissue of the relationship between financial andenvironmental performance. The lack ofconsensus in this literature can be attributedto several factors. The cost of complying withenvironmental regulation can be significant anddetrimental to shareholder wealth maximization.Conversely, a firm that can effectively controlpollution might also be able to effectivelycontrol other costs of production and henceearn a higher rate of return. We utilize datafrom the Investor Responsibility ResearchCenter as well as a proprietary database toinvestigate the relationship betweenenvironmental performance and financialperformance in electric utilities. Utilities,as producers and distributors of energy,produce substantial amounts of pollution.However, since public utilities are regulated,studying the financial and environmentalperformance of utilities affords us theopportunity to see what role regulation playsin enhancing or diminishing the relationshipbetween financial and environmentalperformance.Our results differ from earlier studies in thatwe find do not find a positive relationshipbetween holding period returns and anindustry-adjusted measure of environmentalperformance nor do we find that regulatoryclimate appears to explain returns. While theredoes not appear to be a clearly definedrelationship between regulatory climate and acompliance based measure of environmentalperformance, there is evidence of a negativerelationship between financial return and amore pro-active measure of environmentalperformance. We offer several possibleinterpretations of these results and extensionsfor future research. Copyright Kluwer Academic Publishers 2004

Sharpen your understanding of the financial markets with this incisive volume Equity Markets, Valuation, and Analysis brings together many of the leading practitioner and academic voices in finance to produce a comprehensive and empirical examination of equity markets. Masterfully written and edited by experts in the field, Equity Markets, Valuation, and Analysis introduces the basic concepts and applications that govern the area before moving on to increasingly intricate treatments of sub-fields and market trends. The book includes in-depth coverage of subjects including: · The latest trends and research from across the globe · The controversial issues facing the field of valuation and the future outlook for the field · Empirical evidence and research on equity markets · How investment professionals analyze and manage equity portfolios This book balances its comprehensive discussion of the empirical foundations of equity markets with the perspectives of financial experts. It is ideal for professional investors, financial analysts, and undergraduate and graduate students in finance.

Purpose This research explores whether Glassdoor's annual rankings of the Best Places to Work provide meaningful information to shareholders in identifying companies with the potential for superior future performance. Because their website reaches over 64 million unique visitors monthly, Glassdoor rankings can influence trading patterns. Glassdoor’s awards offer a unique way to analyze employees' feedback as there is no self-nomination process or cost involved, differentiating it from other measures of job satisfaction such as Fortune’s Best Companies to Work For survey. Design/methodology/approach We compare holding period returns of the Best Companies firms to the performance of the S&P 500 index and three separately constructed matched benchmark portfolios. We calculate cumulative raw, risk-adjusted, and abnormal returns based on a buy-and-hold strategy as well as by using the Fama-French (1993) 3-factor and 4-factor models. We also analyze whether selected companies have higher performance one year after the announcement. We control for possible endogeneity problems. Findings We find mixed evidence regarding the superiority of the Best Company firms in holding period returns and risk-adjusted measures compared to appropriate benchmarks. Longer-term cumulative raw returns show that they have higher annual returns compared with its benchmarks. The differences are not statistically significant on a raw or risk-adjusted basis. Research limitations/implications The Best Companies sample is much larger than the matched sample, even with multiple matching methodologies. This difference is limited by the survey design as the employees of larger companies tend to post in Glassdoor survey. Also, since companies in the small Best Companies sample are private companies, comparing their stock performance with comparable companies is challenging. Practical implications Human resource management theories argue that job satisfaction results in enhanced corporate performance. However, verification of such satisfaction by a Glassdoor, as a third-party survey, does not necessarily lead to higher risk-adjusted share price performance. Originality/value We extend previous work that focuses on analyzing employee reviews to consider the impact of being ranked among the best companies on the survey. Second, we employ an extended set of financial performance measures to assess impact. Our analysis also employs a wider range of financial performance metrics and robustness tests.

The authors explore whether firms rated highly by Sustainalytics based on ESG criteria are rewarded with superior long-term stock price performance. They find that firms with the highest ESG ratings statistically outperform the S&P 500 index, although not on a risk-adjusted basis. Firms with higher governance and social scores also statistically outperform those firms with corresponding lower scores. Firms with better (worse) governance scores produce statistically significant positive (negative) alpha values. Firms less likely to adhere to strong governance principles are penalized in the market, while firms more likely following strong social and environmental principles are negatively assessed. Improved governance scores and to a lesser extent improved social scores produce statistically significant positive alpha values whereas negative changes in environmental scores are positively received by the market. Overall, investors are not hurt by following an ESG philosophy with the market rewarding firms for good governance, penalizing those with strong environmental records, and meeting with ambivalence those with strong social records.

We compare the performance of financial literacy programs launched by the CFA Society Pittsburgh in residential settings (2017–2019) with virtual/hybrid programs during the COVID-19 pandemic (2020-2021). Pretest baseline knowledge assessment shows that female students scored lower on subjective and objective financial knowledge questions and self-esteem. However, the global pandemic did not impact the effectiveness of programs based on modality. Students experienced a statistically significant improvement in all four assessment areas of financial literacy. The largest gains in subjective and financial knowledge center on retirement planning. Objective knowl- edge and self-esteem improvements occur most in credit and inflation. Female students experience more significant gains in subjective knowledge, objective knowledge, and self-esteem.

This study expands the work on contagion effects caused by supply chain disruptions beyond the impacted firm and competitors to its customers and suppliers. Using hand-collected data, we analyze the news announcements to determine those that resulted in disruptions in supply, demand, production, inventory, distribution, or transportation at one or more stages of a supply chain across different types of disruptions and across six market segments. Using event study methodology and regression analysis, we find statistically significant negative share price responses to announcement of supply chain disruptions for the affected firm and its competitors, but not for consumer and supplier firms. Competitors in more concentrated industries, with higher growth prospects, or with higher debt ratios, are more impacted by disruptions by peer firms. Customers firms in less competitive industries, who exhibit higher risk, or have overall lower sales react more negatively to disruption announcements.

A comprehensive guide to alternative investments that reveals today's latest research and strategies Historically low interest rates and bear markets in world stock markets have generated intense interest in alternative investments. With returns in traditional investment vehicles relatively low, many professional investors view alternative investments as a means of meeting their return objectives. Alternative Investments: Instruments, Performance, Benchmarks, and Strategies, can put you in a better position to achieve this difficult goal. Part of the Robert W. Kolb Series in Finance, Alternative Investments provides an in-depth discussion of the historic performance, benchmarks, and strategies of every major alternative investment market. With contributions from professionals and academics around the world, it offers valuable insights on the latest trends, research, and thinking in each major area. Empirical evidence about each type of alternative investment is featured, with research presented in a straightforward manner. * Examines a variety of major alternative asset classes, from real estate, private equity, and commodities to managed futures, hedge funds, and distressed securities * Provides detailed insights on the latest research and strategies, and offers a thorough explanation of historical performance, benchmarks, and other critical information * Blends knowledge from the conceptual world of scholars with the pragmatic view of practitioners in this field Alternative investments provide a means of diversification, risk control, and return enhancement and, as such, are attractive to many professional investors. If you're looking for an effective way to hone your skills in this dynamic area of finance, look no further than this book.

The CFA Society Pittsburgh launched a high school financial literacy campaign resulting in sig- nificant improvements in financial behavior, subjective and objective financial knowledge, and self- esteem. Before the campaign, male students and students with higher grade point averages (GPAs) show better objective knowledge. In addition, we find disconnect between actual and perceived fi- nancial knowledge. Students exhibited gains in all aspects after completing the program. The subca- tegories with the lowest pre-survey scores or female students show the greatest improvements in the post-survey. Students with lower GPAs experienced greater improvement in financial behavior and objective knowledge, while higher GPA students improved more in subjective knowledge.

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to explore the effect of supply chain disruptions on competitors. Using companies in the automobile industry, the authors study the contagion effect in supply chains based on the affected firm and its competitors, whether the disruption occurs domestically or by a foreign-based firm, and within the context of economic market cycles. Design/methodology/approach - Standard event study methodology is used to test the stock price reaction to supply chain disruptions. The purpose of this methodology is to determine whether the announcement of an event produces a \"significant\" stock price reaction around the time of the announcement. To conduct such tests, daily stock returns are measured around the announcement date and compared with the expected return. To further test whether the event study results can be explained by the business cycle, sample period, and stock characteristics, the authors use regression analysis. The analysis is based on a data of 408 disruptions compiled from news announcements. Findings - Supply chain disruptions have consequences for affected companies as well as competitors. The stock market impact from disruptions in automobile companies is affected by market cycle as well as the brand domicile. The authors observe that negative stock effect of disruptions occurs in bear markets but not in bull markets. American-brand automakers experience a larger stock price decline in bear markets compared to Japanese-brand automakers. The results support a contagion effect as American-brand automakers experience negative stock reactions when a competitor announces disruptions. The contagion is more pronounced for American-brand automakers in bear markets when disruptions are announced by Japanese-brand automakers. The authors do not find evidence of a contagion effect for Japanese-brand automakers, indicating that they may be more resilient and are not affected by competitors' supply chain performance. Research limitations/implications - The US automobile industry is dominated by five major firms. While the research is ground breaking, the ability to generalizing to other industries that are less concentrated in leadership and competition may be limited. Practical implications - The study has implications for supply chain managers who make decisions regarding investments in disruptions mitigation. The results are also of interest to investors who may seek opportunities to take short positions on stocks within the automobile industry. Originality/value - The paper is the first to test the impact of supply chain disruptions on competitors. Additionally, the authors characterize the impact of disruptions based on market cycle and company domicile.