Socially responsible investment mutual funds largely outperformed their benchmarks across all asset classes last year, according to Social Investment Forum data.
Of 160 SRI funds studied, 65% topped their benchmarks, “most by significant margins,” according to a SIF statement about the findings.
The outperforming funds were in large-cap, small-cap and global equity portfolios, as well as bond and balanced portfolios.
Of 73 large-cap equity funds — the largest category in the study — 72.6% outperformed the S&P 500 on average by more than six percentage points, the statement said. “A majority of the large-cap funds offered by SIF members also outperformed the S&P 500 over three years and over 10 years,” the statement added.
“This analysis underscores the reality that socially responsible investments offer what are genuinely competitive returns,” Cheryl Smith, SIF chairwoman and president of Trillium Asset Management Corp., said in the statement.
The 22 mutual fund companies represented in the SIF analysis are Access Capital Strategies, AHA Investment Funds, Appleseed Fund, Ariel Investments, Azzad Asset Management, Calvert Investments, Community Capital Management, Domini Social Investments, Gabelli Funds, Green Century Funds, Integrity Viking Funds, Legg Mason Global Asset Management, Meeder Asset Management, MMA Praxis Mutual Funds, Neuberger Berman, New Alternatives Fund, Parnassus Investments, Pax WorldInvestments, Portfolio 21 Investments, Sentinel Investments, Walden Asset Management and Winslow Management.
