Sustainability Ratings
Sustainability ratings try to assess a company's economic, environmental and social values and performance. How well a company manages to balance these three dimensions yields valuable information on its ability to benefit from opportunities and manage risks in the mid- to long-term. Awareness for rising environmental and social needs can help identify scope for new products, while bolstering reputation and reducing the potential impact of stiffer legislation and standards. Sustainable companies are also more attractive for employees, which facilitates retaining crucial know-how and fostering innovation.
Such information is particularly valuable for long-term investors. It is being used, for example, by genuine sustainability funds whose composition is based on the "best-of-class" principle: instead of focusing on certain industries or screening some of them out, sustainability funds strive to select the best, i.e. the most sustainable, companies within each industry for inclusion.
The table below presents the sustainability ratings accorded to Swiss Re by four leading raters enjoying a good reputation in the business community, complete with the corresponding profiles. All of them judge Swiss Re to be a sustainability leader within the financial/insurance sector. They differ, though, in how they take into account the fact that sustainability issues are somewhat less pressing in the financial sector than in others. Oekom's strict approach of using similar absolute standards for all companies explains the intermediate placing of Swiss Re on its scale.
For more company-specific information regarding sustainability, please refer to Swiss Re's Annual Corporate Responsibility Report .
Rating Agency |
Swiss Re's sustainability rating and profile |
Link to agency's website |
Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes |
Member of DJSI World & DJSI STOXX 75 out of 100 (2007) |
www.sustainability-indexes.com |
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Innovest
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AAA on a scale from AAA to CCC Innovest profile
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www.innovestgroup.com |
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Oekom |
Investment status: prime C on a scale from A+ to D- | www.oekom.de |
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SiRi Company |
67.6 out of 100 SiRi profile
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www.siricompany.com |
