Summary
We invest in companies that we believe are financially sustainable, well governed, have connections between sustainability characteristics and their profitability or competitive positioning, and provide goods or services that contribute to a prosperous, equitable, healthy, and safe society.
We promote social and environmental characteristics, specifically good corporate governance, efficient capital allocation, and efficient use of natural resources. We do this through positive and negative sustainability screening, and our voting and engagement programs.
We expect investee companies to actively identify risks, opportunities, and consequences from an economic, environmental, and social perspective and that these are implemented in overall business strategies to ensure long-term success. We avoid investments in companies that do not take responsibility for their operations and do not address potential problems linked to regulations such as the OECD's guidelines for multinational companies and the UN's Global Compact principles. We engage portfolio companies in continuous dialogue to gain a better understanding of how they manage sustainability risks and identify potential gaps in risk management.
We consider potential negative consequences of our investment decisions on sustainability factors. Sustainability factors mean environmental, social, and personnel-related issues, social and personnel issues, respect for human rights and the fight against corruption and bribery. We evaluate negative consequences for sustainability factors in part based on information from third-party data providers.
No sustainable investment objective
This financial product promotes environmental or social characteristics but does not have sustainable investments as its objective.
Environmental or social characteristics of the financial product
We promote social and environmental characteristics, specifically good corporate governance, efficient capital allocation, and efficient use of natural resources.
Investment strategy
We invest in publicly listed Nordic companies. The strategy integrates sustainability risks in investment decision-making processes, consideration of negative impacts based on data for sustainability factors, and engagement with companies. The investment process includes:
Exclusion of companies involved in activities deemed by the portfolio manager to be fundamentally unsustainable (conventional and controversial weapons, tobacco, alcohol, pornography, fossil fuels, gambling).
Application of a multi-factor good governance screening. The screening is built on indicators for potential consequences of investment on sustainability factors, such that these indicators are considered in a meaningful way for every investment decision.
3. Application of positive screening based on our ability to establish sector or company-specific links between financial factors and the sustainability policies, practices, or products of potential investments
4. After investment, an engagement strategy is determined by first prioritizing investee companies based on number of sustainability issues and the financial intensity of these issues, and then by the severity of actual or potential adverse impacts and our potential to influence the company.
Proportion of investments
The environmental and social characteristics promoted by this fund apply to all investments in investee companies. As such, 100% of the fund’s invested assets will be aligned with environmental and social characteristics. A small portion of assets are head as cash for liquidity purposes and these assets are outside the scope of our sustainability program.
Monitoring of environmental or social characteristics
Data on sustainability factors are collected and monitored on a regular basis from company reports and a third-party data provider. We also engage portfolio companies in continuous dialogue to gain a better understanding of how they manage sustainability risks and identify potential gaps in risk management.
Methodologies
The fund promotes environmental and social characteristics by:
Excluding companies active in industries we deem to be fundamentally unsustainable
Selecting companies for investment that pass good governance screening, and for which we can establish links between financial and sustainability characteristics.
Considering principal adverse impacts as a component of these screenings.
Engaging with companies with respect to sustainability risks.
Data sources and processing
We use sustainability data provided by investee companies and from third-party data providers. The sustainability manager evaluates the data quality from third-party providers annually by comparing samples from the data provider to primary sources. We do not currently have figures for the proportion of estimated versus measured sustainability data.
Limitations to methodologies and data
Sometimes there is insufficient data coverage from third-party data providers to identify actual and potential negative consequences of investment decisions on sustainability factors. In these cases, the fund may supplement information that is missing with qualitative evaluation internally by the fund.
Due diligence
The due diligence process includes desk and field research before and investment and monitoring of each investment. The fund screens investment objects for actual and potential negative consequences for sustainability factors before investment and during the investment cycle. The fund will collect data and follow up on negative consequences for sustainability factors.
Engagement policies
The fund engages in ongoing dialogue with portfolio companies to understand how they manage sustainability risks and to identify potential gaps in risk management. Where relevant, we seek to use our leverage to influence management to address salient sustainability risks.
As minority shareholders, our leverage ability to influence investee companies depends, among other things, on our ownership share in a company. Our approaches to engagement include:
Voting in favor of shareholder proposals that seek to prevent/mitigate adverse impacts.
Where possible, have an ongoing dialogue with investee companies.
Publishing position statements on sustainability issues.
More information
Voluntary disclosure of Humle Fonder's Principle Adverse Impacts on Sustainability Factors
Sustainability policy