Helps investors determine issuers with strong financial performance as well as positive ESG profile
NEW YORK (November 30, 2022) — ISS ESG, the sustainable investment arm of Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. (ISS), today launched a new, standalone Financial Rating and a combined ESGF Rating to supplement its core ESG Corporate Rating that will help investors identify portfolio companies exhibiting both strong financial performance as well as a positive ESG profile. The supplemental new financial rating data points are currently available via ISS ESG’s proprietary platform DataDesk, and will be available in ISS ESG Corporate Rating reports in 2023. Other key enhancements to the ISS ESG Corporate Rating solution available in today’s launch include a redesigned report that presents key outputs and signals in an easily digestible manner, with further insights related to key issues and a materiality graph, SDG- and climate-related scores and metrics, additional rating performance summary pages, and the integration of a year-on-year trend factor at the indicator level.
Lorraine Kelly, Head of Investment Stewardship Solutions at ISS, said: “Today’s launch is the first in a series of ongoing investments by ISS ESG to enhance and differentiate our Corporate Ratings solution and to actively support our clients’ rapidly evolving ESG data integration, investment, and workflow needs.” Kelly added: “Over the past two years, ISS ESG has appointed corporate ratings sector heads with significant capital markets experience and sectoral expertise, to further strengthen our research team, who are driving innovation alongside our product, platform, technology, and client service teams, with dedicated ISS ESG staff now totaling over 600. Further enhancements are planned for 2023.”
The ISS ESG Corporate Rating solution is designed to help investors understand how ESG risks and opportunities could impact the performance of their investment portfolios. ISS ESG’s Corporate Rating enables investors to evaluate companies’ long-term sustainability performance including ESG risks, opportunities, and impact along the corporate value chain. The ratings can be applied to all types of investment strategies and objectives, including bespoke approaches drawing on the expertise of ISS ESG’s dedicated ratings sector experts.
The supplemental Financial Rating, which is blended into the ESG Corporate Rating to create the ESGF Rating, leverages data from ISS EVA, an established standard in measuring, analyzing, projecting, valuing, and discounting a firm’s underlying economic profit rather than its accounting profit. The new Financial Rating and blended ESGF Rating are presented as absolute scores following the ISS ESG Corporate Rating score and letter grading system of A+ to D-, leveraging nine profitability and six risk measures from the ISS EVA framework.
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About ISS ESG
ISS ESG solutions enable investors to develop and integrate responsible investing policies and practices, engage on responsible investment issues, and monitor portfolio company practices through screening solutions. It also provides climate data, analytics, and advisory services to help financial market participants understand, measure, and act on climate-related risks across all asset classes. In addition, ESG solutions cover corporate and country ESG research and ratings enabling its clients to identify material social and environmental risks and opportunities. For more information, please visit us at: www.iss-esg.com
Media Contact:
Sarah Ball
Executive Director, Communications, ISS
+44.203.192.5728
sarah.ball@issgovernance.com
ISS ESG Launches Enhanced Corporate Rating Solution With Supplemental Financial Rating
Helps investors determine issuers with strong financial performance as well as positive ESG profile
NEW YORK (November 30, 2022) — ISS ESG, the sustainable investment arm of Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. (ISS), today launched a new, standalone Financial Rating and a combined ESGF Rating to supplement its core ESG Corporate Rating that will help investors identify portfolio companies exhibiting both strong financial performance as well as a positive ESG profile. The supplemental new financial rating data points are currently available via ISS ESG’s proprietary platform DataDesk, and will be available in ISS ESG Corporate Rating reports in 2023. Other key enhancements to the ISS ESG Corporate Rating solution available in today’s launch include a redesigned report that presents key outputs and signals in an easily digestible manner, with further insights related to key issues and a materiality graph, SDG- and climate-related scores and metrics, additional rating performance summary pages, and the integration of a year-on-year trend factor at the indicator level.
Lorraine Kelly, Head of Investment Stewardship Solutions at ISS, said: “Today’s launch is the first in a series of ongoing investments by ISS ESG to enhance and differentiate our Corporate Ratings solution and to actively support our clients’ rapidly evolving ESG data integration, investment, and workflow needs.” Kelly added: “Over the past two years, ISS ESG has appointed corporate ratings sector heads with significant capital markets experience and sectoral expertise, to further strengthen our research team, who are driving innovation alongside our product, platform, technology, and client service teams, with dedicated ISS ESG staff now totaling over 600. Further enhancements are planned for 2023.”
The ISS ESG Corporate Rating solution is designed to help investors understand how ESG risks and opportunities could impact the performance of their investment portfolios. ISS ESG’s Corporate Rating enables investors to evaluate companies’ long-term sustainability performance including ESG risks, opportunities, and impact along the corporate value chain. The ratings can be applied to all types of investment strategies and objectives, including bespoke approaches drawing on the expertise of ISS ESG’s dedicated ratings sector experts.
The supplemental Financial Rating, which is blended into the ESG Corporate Rating to create the ESGF Rating, leverages data from ISS EVA, an established standard in measuring, analyzing, projecting, valuing, and discounting a firm’s underlying economic profit rather than its accounting profit. The new Financial Rating and blended ESGF Rating are presented as absolute scores following the ISS ESG Corporate Rating score and letter grading system of A+ to D-, leveraging nine profitability and six risk measures from the ISS EVA framework.
###
About ISS ESG
ISS ESG solutions enable investors to develop and integrate responsible investing policies and practices, engage on responsible investment issues, and monitor portfolio company practices through screening solutions. It also provides climate data, analytics, and advisory services to help financial market participants understand, measure, and act on climate-related risks across all asset classes. In addition, ESG solutions cover corporate and country ESG research and ratings enabling its clients to identify material social and environmental risks and opportunities. For more information, please visit us at: www.iss-esg.com
Media Contact:
Sarah Ball
Executive Director, Communications, ISS
+44.203.192.5728
sarah.ball@issgovernance.com
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