Investor & analyst targeting
FAQs
Answers to questions that enable actions.
QWhich ESG agencies should we prioritise?
A
The ESG ratings agencies that are most highly-rated by asset managers are listed in the (annually-updated) IRRI Survey
QWhich sell-side brokers publish sustainability research on companies?
A
About half of European brokers are actively publishing sustainability research as part of their investment research output. Some of these also have global or Asian coverage. Some of these have global reach and, therefore, publish on North American, Asian or Australasian markets.
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We advise companies with material sustainability exposures to consult the lists below to identify brokers that cover their company with 'mainstream' financial research and ensure that they are aware of any plans that these firms have to publish sustainability research on their company, sector or on issues that affect them:
QHow can I find the largest shareholders in my company?
A
The IR team at most companies will maintain a running record of their largest investors - sometimes supplied by their bankers. Such information can also be provided by financial data providers such as Bloomberg, FactSet or Refinitiv.
QHow should we prioritise our communications with investors on sustainability?
A
As with all investor communications, companies should prioritise the asset managers that hold their shares and then those that might buy these shares. After this, companies should prioritise the research providers that influence those asset managers.
QWhich markets are most active in SRI / ESG?
A
Until recently, Northern European markets led the world in respect of their level of sustainable investment engagement with growing interest in Canada, some parts of the USA, Australia, southern Europe and Japan.
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This 'rule of thumb' is breaking down, however, such that it is now more accurate to reflect on rapid and sustained interest across the world. Details of interest levels and strategies deployed in different markets can be found in the bi-annual Global Sustainable Investment Review and in the PRI Annual Report
Between 2016 to 2018, the fastest growing region for responsible investment has been Japan, followed by Australia/New Zealand and Canada. These were also the three fastest growing regions in the previous two-year period. The largest three regions— based on the value of their sustainable investing assets—were Europe, the United States and Japan.