[This] response to the COVID-19 health crisis is one example of how ESG efforts undertaken by public companies can benefit not only societies in which they operate, but the corporate shareholders as well. — As COVID-19 continues to spread and severely impact the economy of the United States and other countries around the world, Quest…
[Riverwater Partners’] highly integrative process can enable our clients to invest according to their values while also opening up the possibility of not only no performance disadvantage but, as is our goal over the long term, a performance advantage. — For many years, the primary approach taken by “responsible” investors was to screen out certain…
We recently wrote to the U.S. Department of Labor regarding the rights of shareholders and their ability to proxy vote. You can read what was sent below: — Attention: Proxy Voting and Shareholder Rights NPRM Office of Regulations and Interpretations Employee Benefits Security Administration Room N-5655 U.S. Department of Labor 200 Constitution Avenue NW Washington,…
At Riverwater, we actively engage with the companies in which we invest. Specifically, we do so in situations where we believe our efforts can help make a material difference in supporting a company’s ESG efforts—whether educating them on the benefits of beginning to incorporate ESG and offering resources to help them do so, or working…
Re: Financial Factors in Selecting Plan Investments Proposed Regulation (RIN 1210-AB95) Dear Director Canary: Riverwater Partners LLC is an independent, employee-owned, registered investment advisory firm based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, serving families, nonprofits, and institutions. We invest in superior businesses with exceptional management teams, attractive valuations, and a focus on social responsibility and sustainability. As fiduciaries…
Some investing styles, such as value investing, have proven themselves useful over the course of many decades. By contrast, investing fads are short-lived. They look promising in a particular market context but fade away as the world changes. Examples include day trading, house flipping, and, in our view, Bitcoin and liquid alternative investments. What about…
Energy Space: Divestment vs. Engagement Divest or engage? The question of whether to divest holdings of energy companies (e.g. Chevron and Exxon Mobil) or engage with them to move their business models away from fossil fuels is one that investors are asking today. At Riverwater Partners, we believe it is not yet possible to fuel…
Coined in 2005 in a landmark study entitled “Who Cares Wins,” which made the case that embedding environmental, social, and governance factors in capital markets makes good business sense and leads to better outcomes for society, ‘ESG’ is getting a lot of attention. Individuals, particularly young ones, are liking what they hear. Companies are paying…
B the Change™ – inspired by Gandhi’s famous invocation that we must be the change we seek in the world. As a socially responsible investment advisory firm, Riverwater Partners is proud to have officially become the first Milwaukee company and the only investment advisor in Wisconsin (as of September 2018) to achieve B Corp™…
After the school shooting in Parkland, this past February, Bloomberg reported that the Florida Teachers’ Pension Fund was invested in the maker of the same gun used in the massacre at Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School.[1] The shooting in Parkland and the countless gun-related tragedies in the last few years have divided the nation in…
