ESG

DaddyFund

ESG is a concept invented by hard-minded rich guys who noticed and took advantage of a demand for "good" companies on the market. And most of the individual companies with high ESG scores are just trying to play the game so they get included in the funds. There may be some particularly good companies you could buy, but you'd have to research and pick them individually.

RayU_AZ

Fidelity has Sustainable, strong environmental, social and governance, ETF funds avaialble. 1. FRNW-Clean energy 2. FDWM -Women Leadership 3. FSBD -ESG Environmental, social & governance Bond fund 4. FSST -US equity Fund ETF with ESG Fidelity also has custom basket funds you can create yourself.

Much_Willingness4597

I’m explaining why a company like Chevron would have a good ESG rating despite being in a “dirty” industry.

Much_Willingness4597

It’s not about directly about losing money a blind squirrel would’ve made money in the last 10 years… ESG was really never about trying to do “good” it was about avoiding companies that didn’t control asymmetric risk factors. Take BP in oil. I know people who work in oil Fields, and who operate on rigs. They were well known to be absolutely insane cowboy doing dumb shit. On deep water Horizion there were a dozen things they should have done they didn’t and ALL of them at a normal oil offshore operator like Chevron: 1. Required a VP signature.(and no VP would’ve signed off on any of those risks). 2. Would have resulted in an immediate termination if anyone found out you were doing them.

Much_Willingness4597

If those autonomous weapons are keeping the peace in South Korea, and preventing a bloody war that would be pointless with their northern Neighbor… why do I care that they are autonomous? If the Ukrainians are using an autonomous drone, or guidance system to put a missile into a Russian tank, should we fund the company who manufacturers the components? Of all the ESG considerations I’ve never really understood people being mad about weapons providers.

IvanKaramazov99

You need to pick individual stocks to do this properly. Any metric (like ESG) just gets gamed. It's Goodhart's Law; when a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure. I pick all my own stocks, and to do that right, you need to do quite a bit of research on the companies. So, just also spend the time and effort to consider the ethical aspects to their business. It's just another aspect of your research. You'll need to accept imperfection. No company is run by angels, and all companies have some negative impact. You'll also make mistakes because you're always working from incomplete information. However, most of the time, it's not that hard to differentiate from companies that are doing their best vs. companies that don't care.

my5cworth

You want to look at Morningstar ratings of various funds, specifically ESG reports and ratings: [https://www.morningstar.com/company/ratings](https://www.morningstar.com/company/ratings)

micron_to_400

You’ll most likely receive lower returns and the fees are usually higher. Moreover, while ESG diversification may help mitigate risk, this is not guaranteed.

brendonts

Brother investing your monthly wages into Raytheon isn't even going to register a tick lol.  ESG is marketing, trying to min/max being ethical as a first world denizen is like trying to find a warm wall in a building made of ice. If you're asking this question, you'd probably be better off just buying a total market fund and leaving ESG scoring and individual stock picking to professionals.  There are ESG focused funds like EVSG but from what I've read it's like a 95%+ overlap with existing total market funds....volunteering would do a lot more for your conscious than overthinking investing.

iebelig

its hard to find something perfect so you invest in weapons? that does not make sense. ESG scores are dumb yea i figured that out

AICHEngineer

Not that your paltry amount of money really matters, but this isnt a zero sum game. Any capital you over allocate to some "ESG" ethical style creates a differential in risk/reward for the companies youre underweighting relative to the index. If you actually introduced a large enough price distortion, such as you investing with many likeminded people, then the companies you underallocate to become comparatively cheap for the same cashflows and risk, thus they will be bought up. You will have achieved nothing. Activist investing does not help anything. If anything, it hurts dirtier companies by causing an increased cost of capital in the short term, making innovation and greenifying harder.

roboboom

As you’ve already discovered, the ESG scores are nonsense. If you have certain convictions, all I can say is you should just pick the companies you think are ethical according to your own beliefs. It’s all about where you personally want to draw the line. Oil is a great example. If you want to avoid pipelines, refiners, producers, etc that’s easy. If you want to avoid any company that uses oil at any point in its supply chain, well that’s impossible.

Much_Willingness4597

The challenge with ESG metrics is… 1. They are generally compared against peer firms. Chevron might be BEST of the oil gas sector but still an oil company… 2. The criteria weighting is all over the place. Someone who sells V8 engines might get a far better score than Tesla because of board governance (The G). 3. Your ethics are different than others. I may consider Nuke good for the environment. You may consider Nukes an ultimately evil that we should replace with Russian gas. (Actual position of European environmentalists). Your best route isn’t outsourcing your ethics. You just end up with whatever the fund managers hypocrisy is.

FamiliarLeadership99

I personally just buy broad market etf’s that incorporate the entire US Market or International and Emerging. It’s virtually impossible to not invest into a company doing something immoral unless you are investing in individuals stocks and-keeping up to date. I personally just refuse to invest in individual stocks that go against my values or in etfs where they have companies I dislike weighted at a high percentage. ESG Scores are a joke since some of those companies who have better ESG scores may manipulate certain areas to make themselves look better when in reality they are doing something shady.

MuchFaithlessness164

Having been in the sustainable investing industry for over twenty years, this report is spot on. So many of the large investment managers simply take an existing index, layer on some ESG risk metrics, and call it sustainable. It's not sustainable, it's a "less bad" version of the original index. There's nothing wrong with that if that's what your goal is, but a truly sustainable portfolio is built from the ground up incorporating companies that are leading us into a cleaner, more resilient, more resource-efficient, and more equitable economy. You can't mail it in, you actually have to put in the due diligence.

Global_Implement_720

A vegan wedding ring, that's a first, you'd be an ESG legend if they aren't conflict diamonds.

Electronic_Okra_2901

# Why Are BYND Posts Getting Shadowbanned? Something’s off. I tried posting about Beyond Meat ($BYND) in a couple subs—stuff about their debt fix and huge short interest (60%+ of float)—but my posts keep vanishing. No mod message, no reason, just gone.<grok:render type="render\_inline\_citation"> 5</grok:render><grok:render type="render\_inline\_citation"> 29</grok:render> Heard the same about u/capybaraStocks, a dude with millions of shares whose DD was blowing up before Reddit nuked him.<grok:render type="render\_inline\_citation"> 37</grok:render><grok:render type="render\_inline\_citation"> 25</grok:render> X posts are saying Big Meat or hedge funds are behind it, scared of a squeeze or BYND’s comeback story (Panda Express deals, ESG wins).<grok:render type="render\_inline\_citation"> 15</grok:render><grok:render type="render\_inline\_citation"> 4</grok:render> Is this just Reddit’s bots, or something shadier? I’m betting BYND’s undervalued at under $1. Anyone else’s posts getting hit? What’s the real story here?

irishtwinsons

I’m talking about ESG funds that usually carry higher expense ratios (perhaps there are some that have cheaper expense ratios recently…)

Mnshine_1

I do not think ESG significantly impacts the stock price since maybe around 2022-2023 or earlier

AccomplishedView4709

Look at the ESG score if this is what you based your investment on. Good luck.

irishtwinsons

Whatever ESG ETF you hold, just look up their top holdings. ETFs are very transparent about it. Nestle was in the top holdings of so many that I looked at. The only one I could find without them was a bond fund (SUSB).

irishtwinsons

Everyone who pays the premium expense ratio for their ESG funds can be comforted by the fact Nestle is their top holding.

Affectionate-Lab1368

Isn’t this the whole premise of ESG tho?

IronyElSupremo

For the DW, I’d just go with the plain index if cheaper. ESG, with noble intentions, is more an exercise in how these companies can effect a PR strategy//may leave out actual smaller stocks in that arena. Love fossil-free investing myself, but I have “growth” shares for that Others covered the DW vs EM debate is covered

MossRock42

A brief essay on the ethics of investing in stocks The act of investing, often seen as a purely transactional pursuit focused solely on maximizing financial return, carries with it an inherent moral dimension. As capital flows represent society's vote of confidence in specific corporate behaviors, individuals trading stocks have an ethical obligation to exercise greater discernment regarding the companies they support. While many investors prioritize profitability above all else, a strong argument can be made that individual stock traders should integrate Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) considerations into their investment criteria, aligning their financial decisions with their personal moral values and contributing to broader social good. The first pillar of this argument is the ethical responsibility of the capital owner. By purchasing a stock, an investor becomes a part-owner of that company. This ownership, however small, grants the investor a stake in the company’s actions, making them tacitly responsible for its environmental impact, labor practices, and overall societal contribution. If a trader condemns human rights violations, environmental destruction, or unethical governance in public life, consistency demands they avoid financially supporting the companies perpetrating those actions. Ethical investing, therefore, is an act of moral integrity—a refusal to profit from harm. The concept of "sin stocks" (companies involved in tobacco, gambling, or weapons) highlights this moral discomfort, where the investor must decide if potential financial gains justify complicity in activities they deem harmful. The second pillar rests on the practical power of collective divestment and selective investment. While a single individual’s decision to sell shares of an "unethical" company might not immediately impact its stock price, the aggregated force of millions of retail and institutional investors applying ESG screens dramatically shifts market dynamics. When large amounts of capital pull away from companies with poor ethical records (divestment), it can raise their cost of capital, making it more expensive for them to fund operations and growth. Conversely, funneling capital into ethical companies (selective investment) lowers their cost of capital, offering them a competitive advantage. This mechanism creates a powerful financial incentive for corporations to improve their practices, demonstrating that ethical choices by individual traders can directly influence real-world corporate behavior over time. Finally, the shift toward ethical investing is increasingly supported by a long-term view of financial stability. Companies with strong ESG profiles are often better managed, more resilient, and less exposed to future risks like climate change regulations, social justice litigation, or corruption scandals. A company that abuses its workforce today risks massive legal costs and boycotts tomorrow; a company that pollutes without consequence today risks severe regulatory penalties in the future. By investing ethically, the individual trader is not just being moral, but also being prudent. They are selecting companies positioned for sustainable success in an economy where consumers, regulators, and employees increasingly demand accountability. In conclusion, the decision to trade stocks ethically transforms a purely financial transaction into a moral one. It is an argument based on the coherence of one’s personal values, the practical leverage of capital, and the long-term protection of assets. Individual traders have the agency to use their money as a force for good, voting with their dollars to elevate those companies striving for a better future, and thereby fulfilling a duty to a broader society that extends beyond the portfolio's immediate bottom line.

Some-Rent-7742

ABAT is way over bought. On paper, it’s the great hope of American battery recycling. In practice, it’s giving “meme stock in a lab coat” energy. I’ve been in the EV and battery space for years, and my personal opinion is that ABAT has the classic symptoms of a company chasing buzzwords instead of building fundamentals. Their domestic refining footprint is tiny compared to the total U.S. recycling need — think single raindrop in a cobalt storm. They’ve never posted consistent profits, and the industry scuttlebutt suggests leadership is better at hyping “circular economy” slides than actually closing the loop. My read? Most of their valuable feedstock still ends up exported for refining abroad, which kind of defeats the “American” in the name. Meanwhile, the stock’s been mooning mostly on vibes and retail chatter. Feels like a bubble built on battery buzzwords and PowerPoint decks. I’m not giving financial advice, but I’d personally classify this as a high-risk, low-substance play — a meme stock cosplaying as an ESG darling. TL;DR: Battery hype + zero profits + micro market share = 🚩🚩🚩 Not saying it’s doomed… just saying I’m not holding the bag when the music stops.

Brave-Bit-252

So LNG is not the play because on one end hippie europe is going heatpump while poorer countries literally burn coal for energy? And there just isn’t any market for LNG? Can’t be serious. Btw Next Decade is exactly targeting ESG driven markets by focusing on reducing emission in their process. I think they are the play especially because of the hippies.

mikerubini

Hey there! First off, I love the ambition behind your ChatGPT stock analysis prompt—sounds like you’re really diving deep into the nitty-gritty of stock evaluation! To tackle your specific questions, here are a few thoughts: 1. **Financial Metrics & Valuation Factors**: You’ve got a solid foundation with the metrics you’ve included. Just make sure to emphasize key ratios like P/E, P/B, and EV/EBITDA, as they can provide quick insights into valuation. Also, consider adding a section on free cash flow, as it’s a crucial indicator of a company’s financial health. 2. **Clarity & Accuracy**: Your instructions are pretty comprehensive, but it might help to break down complex sections into simpler bullet points. This way, it’s easier for the AI to follow and for users to digest the information. 3. **Critical Analysis Angles**: Don’t forget about macroeconomic indicators like interest rates and inflation, as they can significantly impact stock performance. Also, including ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) factors could be a game-changer, especially with the growing focus on sustainable investing. 4. **Adaptability Across Sectors**: To make your prompt more versatile, consider adding a section that allows for sector-specific adjustments. For example, tech companies might need a deeper dive into R&D and innovation, while consumer goods might focus more on supply chain dynamics and consumer sentiment. If you’re looking for a tool that can help with trend analysis, I actually work on a platform called Treendly that tracks emerging trends across various sectors. It could be a great resource to pull in real-time data and insights to enhance your analysis. Feel free to share your current version of the prompt—I’d love to take a look and provide more tailored feedback! Good luck with your project!

ExcitableSarcasm

Can't comment on FPX Nickel specifically, but companies in this area in general are on a positive bend. Nickel is used in EVs and steel manufacturing. No matter who wins the EV race, and as long as places like China and Africa keep building, nickel is a solid hedge. FPX in particular I have no idea about their operations. Canada already has Long Harbour as a major producer, and the main heavy weights in the space are the Indonesians just based off their volumes, even if the Canadians and Finns beat them out on a climate change impact basis. FPX will probably be competitive on that basis alone (ESG) due to the CA supply chain being much cleaner than the Indo one. All in all, I don't know shit, but my gut instinct is that FPX will \*probably\* be a secondary player in a secondary producing country, which is to say, the sector is in good place for growth, but as with any med sized player, plenty of opportunity for company bullshit to ruin valuation.

Unfinishe_Masterpiec

Companies already have something called an ESG rating which includes the impact on the environment. Many investors already do steer clear of profitable companies, such as those in the tobacco industry, for personal reasons. In addition, profitability and PE ratios aren't even close to the only metric investors use to value a company. There are countless companies that haven't turned a profit over extended periods of time, but have sufficient cashflow to operate and grow their sales.

RiseIfYouWould

You write ESG on a 10 dollar bill and suddenly its now worth 12 dollars. Most clowns have moved on though, and the cons now use AI instead.

Avenge_Willem_Dafoe

what did ESG have to do with bubbles? unless you were an ESG consultant, it was basically a social trend more than some deep deep macroeconomic trend

RiseIfYouWould

The word became associated with bubble, the same way ESG was before it.

dww332

No - ESG investing is just marketing to people who want that sort of investment and I don’t consider it a real investment strategy because it puts other factors ahead of investment goals such as capital gain, income or capital preservation.

greytoc

ESG doesn't mean what a lot of people think it means. It doesn't mean that it excludes weapons or anything like that necessarily. And the ESG frameworks seems very subjective and ill-defined. If you don't want to invest in certain companies because they don't agree with you - then you simply have to exclude that company from your portfolio.

dotjob

I have some ex fossil fuels ex tobacco funds, as well as some ESG ETFs

Picsou-sensei

Hello, investors. I have a question for you about something I have in mind for a little while, and that might be of interest for some beginners at one point, too. My situation for context : I don't have a lot of money invested right now but I'm building a portfolio month after month, on the long run, and my current strategy is pretty simple / boring : 9 French company stocks from various fields, leaders for most of them (because I'm French and I know them quite well), 1 Dutch stock (not ASML, but not relevant to the topic anyway). That would be 50% of my portfolio. Then I would like to go up to 25% in SnP500, and 25% in paper gold. And that's it, but recently I've been wondering about investing a bit in ETFs labelled in foreign currency (I already have a lot in Euro and Dollar) like CHF, SEK, NOK, perhaps an Asian currency... I figured that could perhaps be interesting to have foreign currency in stock if one of them really gets stronger over another one, and that if may be used as a defensive measure in case the dollar and the euro have some problems. My questions for you more experienced and knowledgeable investors out there, to start a discussion too : 1- Do you think this is completely useless, and why ? 2- If not useless, do you think this could work but it's probably too much of a complicated strategy for a beginner ? 3- What ETF in foreign currencies are available on IBKR ? I seem to have found one in CHF, one in NOK (but apparently only possible to find screened ETFs with ESG companies), but I can't seem to find a good one in SEK, nor in DKK or SGD (Singapore dollar) for instance. Would you have some ETFs that are available on IBKR ? I've tried chat GPT but it wasn't that helpful, and I've tried searching IBKR a lot but sometimes it seems some ISIN lead to nothing... and I'm not sure I know why. Thank you, and have a nice day, wherever you are !

theoutsideinternist

Thank you for putting these out there. I’ve heard of Autodesk, of course, but never considered looking into it as an ESG investment. Today is not the day to bring up investing in AMD for anyone who wasn’t already in it haha.

TheCapitalMentor

Most investors wrestle with that tradeoff at some point. Personally, I treat ethics and returns as two layers. Your core portfolio can stay diversified and rational, while your values based sleeve can reflect your principles If you avoid every company with an ethical gray area, your investable universe shrinks fast, as you know. But being intentional, like overweighting sustainability leaders or using ESG ETFs, lets you align money and morals without giving up long-term compounding

SeparateBig5529

ESG funds? Hi all! I’m a newbie investor looking mostly for a place to invest my ROTH and limited brokerage funds. I’ve felt really conflicted investing in things like S&P 500 especially with everything going on in the world right now. I’m especially looking to invest in sustainable infrastructure and exclude anything to do with weapons. I do however, want to be smart with my money and not shoot myself in the foot with poor returns. How do people feel about ESG funds these days? I was specifically looking into INFR, RNEW, NFRA. Thanks in advance for your help, I’m definitely willing to keep an open mind. I’m obviously very new to all of this!

technojoe99

Texas is building a parallel economy. You might remember a few years back how popular ESG was. However, it was politicized to deny funding to profitable businesses that weren't PC. Then there was the de-banking, and locking people and organizations out of payment systems with no discernable pattern, other than viewpoint discrimination. A number of prominent figures, who felt discriminated against, concluded that their viewpoint needs a parallel economy which can operate independently from the other viewpoint, without fear of being cutoff for not being PC, and can be a shelter for people and businesses who get cutoff. This is one of the fruits of that effort.

ConsiderationIcy5255

Solstice Materials could get a crazy ESG multiple. Automation could get its own growth premium. Aerospace already has recurring revenue. If Joby somehow makes it, sure Honeywell benefits, but if Joby crashes and burns, Honeywell Aerospace still cashes checks from defense every day

Severe_Set5371

Hedge with LGBTQ100 ESG ETF and tell your advisor you are now diversified.

Jon3141592653589

It’s funny but the reason I didn’t buy PLTR back in the early days is that I already had a position in my token morally-questionable stock, APO. However, I sold all my APO when the Epstein connections (via Leon Black) emerged. Of course it had minimal impact, since Apollo’s purpose is just to make money, so I would’ve done better to hold. But it set the standard that if a stock didn’t meet my personal ESG criteria I’d just pass. And PLTR is so far off the deep end that this news just seems like a feature rather than a bug.

Hot-Walk-6334

Missed out on Nebius and Build a Bear because I was too greedy with entry price and too hesitant to pull the trigger but put 20% of port into Iren shares today. Like how they are sustainable with the energy they use and Oracle and some big tech will see them as good way of meeting ESG targets as they use water and solar power. Also like the sound of their management.

C130J_Darkstar

Gas turbines aren’t the competitor for Oklo… they’re a stopgap. Sure, Siemens or GE can drop in a 50MW gas unit today, but that comes with fuel volatility, carbon liability, and eventual stranded-asset risk. Oklo’s moat is offering long-duration, zero-carbon baseload in a footprint small enough to compete directly with those mobile gas units, but without the emissions and fuel costs. That’s why customers like AI data centers care… it’s not just about plugging a megawatt gap today, it’s about securing 24/7 clean power for the next 20 years without being exposed to gas price cycles, carbon policy, or ESG headwinds. Gas units can solve today’s problem, but Oklo is solving the next decade’s problem.

PieGluePenguinDust

you know, there are some might powerful tools in the investment toolbox if anyone cares to discuss. and no, not your mothers ESG.

Medical-Analysis-554

give it a few months. going on with that name will be considered exalted behavior by then, while mentioning ESG will get you designated a terrorist org

Resident-Zilly-0977

🚀 YOLOing into Nuclear – OKLO + SMR 🚀 Alright you smooth-brained degenerates, listen up: I’ve been riding the nuclear wave harder than my ex rides alimony payments. Two tickers: $OKLO and $SMR. Why I’m bullish: • Nuclear is finally getting its moment – government subsidies, AI/data centers sucking down power like it’s GFuel, and ESG clowns realizing you can’t power the world with vibes and sunshine alone. • OKLO is the wild card – they’re pushing microreactors and “fast reactors.” High risk, high reward, think SpaceX before NASA kissed the ring. • SMR (NuScale) is the “boomer bet” – safer, more established, but still trading like a penny stock on steroids. If SMRs get the greenlight from utilities, it’s game over for coal. The play: • OKLO = lottery ticket to Valhalla. Either it goes 🚀 or rugpulls like your favorite rug store. • SMR = slower grind, but still asymmetric upside if small modular reactors get mainstream adoption. Exit strategy? I don’t have one. I’m diamond-handing uranium dust until my portfolio glows in the dark. TL;DR: Betting on nukes. OKLO = moonshot. SMR = boomer rocket. Either I retire on a yacht powered by a mini-reactor or I’m back at Wendy’s flipping uranium patties. https://preview.redd.it/udk76noidypf1.png?width=1290&format=png&auto=webp&s=22fc679913feebc93d0394d3da13793eb5f02b24

cryptopo

I fully believe you should invest exactly how you want and applaud you for doing so. I still hold some PLTR and have been selling CCs against it since I don’t really care too much about assignment. That said, there are plenty of “moral” investments. SUSA tracks US companies with strong ESG scores, or DSI which excludes controversial companies. Further, surely you agree there are degrees to “moral,” right? Seeing things in such binary terms feels inadequate here.

Deep_Find

Great question! The 5% rule makes sense for most portfolios, but individual stocks can serve specific purposes beyond just returns. Some folks pick individual stocks to have more control over ESG factors—like avoiding certain industries or supporting companies they believe in. Others enjoy the learning process; owning Apple or Microsoft makes you pay closer attention to tech trends and business fundamentals than you would with VTI. There's also the conviction play angle. If you've done deep research on a company and truly understand the business better than the market does, that 5-10% allocation might outperform over time. Warren Buffett didn't diversify into 500 companies for a reason. What's your main goal—pure returns, learning, or something else?

EuroPoor-NoodleLover

Really depends on what "ethics" you belive in - Conservative, Liberal, something in-between. For example a more liberal ethics stance on valuating is the famous ESG score BlackRock gives to companies. But a lot of people find the "woke" movement unethical for them, thus making ESG unreliable for them. A more all-out approach on Ethics whould be to just skip sectors as Defense, Tabacoo, Alcohol, Lingerie and Fashion stocks. Farming companies for example do the noble job of bringing food to the table for everyone litteraly, but what's your opinion on pesticides, produce origin and such. Pharmaceuticals and Healthcare the same - noble job of keeping people healthy, but the way each company tries to do so, is totally different.

AICHEngineer

https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4359282 Also "impact elasticity of brown and green firms", a study of the morningstar ESG ratings and how preferentially allocating to high "esg" funds actually results in negative outcomes for promoting ESG goals, particularly through increasing the cost of capital for firms that are dirty and could improve through investment while unhelpfully reducing cost of capital for already green firms that can barely do anything more as it is to make themselves more green.

SentimentSurfer

Don’t sleep on $CLSK (CleanSpark) - it may soon enter the HPC/AI infrastructure space, and that could send the stock vertical. Here's why: * Operational excellence: CLSK consistently ranks among the most efficient Bitcoin miners - low cost per coin, high uptime, and smart scaling. This efficiency gives them an edge regardless of BTC volatility. * Strong BTC treasury: CLSK has been strategically holding part of its mined Bitcoin, creating a growing treasury. This not only boosts their balance sheet but gives them capital flexibility to expand into HPC/AI. * AI/HPC pivot potential: With robust infrastructure and access to cheap power, CLSK is well-positioned to offer AI/HPC hosting - a massive, high-margin growth sector. Early signs suggest they’re preparing to enter. * Green energy + ESG edge: Their renewable energy usage makes them more sustainable, more scalable, and more attractive to institutional investors. * Valuation still low: The market still values CLSK as a pure-play miner. A shift to include AI/HPC revenue could trigger a major re-rating. If HPC momentum picks up + BTC treasury grows + operational edge holds, CLSK could rip hard. One of the most asymmetric plays out there right now.

Treadmiler

I strongly disagree on your DOJ comment. Carvana is under active SEC investigation for securities fraud, deceptive accounting, and undisclosed related party transactions which is exactly the conduct this Trump-era SEC is focused on. Under Chairman Paul Atkins, the agency has deprioritized ESG and technical violations & is zeroing in on blatant fraud, insider enrichment, and retail investor harm. Carvana checks every box for this SEC priorities. Insiders dumped billions in stock at zero cost basis while allegedly hiding $800M in off-book loan sales to Bridgecrest, a private shadow affiliate. The company misled investors about regulatory sanctions, masked delinquency rates, and is manipulating gain on sale accounting. With a federal class action already moving forward and DOJ scrutiny intensifying, I don’t believe this SEC isn’t going to let it slide. Civil penalties are likely and a criminal referral could now be in play. I will be severely disappointed if the DOJ settles for a fine with Carvana & the Garcia’s.

yakuzaPaalooza

What charade, ESG investing is basically dead. If people want to invest with a conscience they should do their own research and buy accordingly. Forget ETFs or Funds telling you what's right or wrong.

mohityadavx

So, why all this charade around them, might as well as go for the big oil who purportedly has a big hand in defining how ESG norms are defined.

StatisticalMan

ESG are just greenwashing themselves of course they aren't going to try and combat greenwashing.

DaemonTargaryen2024

I wouldn't own single shares of stock of a company I was that opposed to. But I also just hold broad market index funds, so I don't do any of that balancing. You can look at ESG funds but those are imperfect.

Wildbirddog

Save it for your ESG investing...

ctnoxin

Fair enough, if you want to stay misinformed, and gleefully ethically compromised then don't look into ESG To address the OP, you'll avoid Thiel, Nike (slave labor), petroleum (climate change and pollution), coca cola (read about Columbia), and United health (or any health insurance company for that matter), if you filter by ESG, and have better ROI, since petrolum production is tanking, Nike hasn't moved for a year because of some idiotic tariff policies etc.

Stephen_1984

I’m planning on buying SPTM, IDEV and FRDM for my IRA, but the market hasn’t dropped enough to buy much. My only substantial funds are IVV and CSXAX in taxable accounts. SPTM: S&P 1500. IDEV: Developed Markets ex USA. FRDM: Emerging markets ex China-like countries. IVV: S&P 500. CSXAX: S&P 500 ESG.

IronyElSupremo

Probably want companies that are on the cutting edge on technological solutions, which can be risky under certain conditions, .. but a mostly U.S. based growth fund/ETF is the way to start (QQQM) with a smidge of non-US tech. Tech tends to be interest rate dependent, so there may be periods where it’s flat. Still QQQ products have great 10 year returns including rolling averages. Maybe add some international via IDMO to catch some non-US high fliers. There’s ESG (environmental, societal, governance) funds-ETFs, .. but the process has been co-opted. An oil giant with a great HR department can be in those, while a solar company may not make the cut. Thing is 10% of the wealthiest own 90% of the stock market, so think while one can have a basic screen (like limiting fossil fuels by owning techy-growth funds), .. it’s ultimately not going to matter. If small fry, you’re just along for the ride.

Regarded_Regard

ESG investing is dumb. Store your money under a mattress because every company has ESG issues.

IronyElSupremo

Easiest is buy an “ESG” fund. Calvert funds have the longest track record since the 1980s for [iirc] religious objectors but probably “active” management with their “non-vice” approach. Still Calvert are the long term players, but there’s various ESG-screen index ETFs at mostly iShares (too many to list here, but XVV, USXF, and DMXF are relatively low cost) .. but Vanguard released 2 recently. Thing with ESG is the companies have responded to them, so you get big oil companies but not a small solar company that can’t afford the HR. Another idea is direct indexing (Fidelity) where you hold the individual stocks .. screening the holdings of a top 50 (XLG) ETF or even top 100 global (ishares IOO) ETF against the top ESG large cap holdings (use VXX, USXF, DMXF). The late Jack Bogle theorized buying and holding such a DIY index could slightly beat the S&P 500 over time. Another idea is go with momentum index ETFs (Invesco’s SPMO is has the best returns) and rebalance annually. You can say you’re “selling” any problematic stocks; probably pair with something like low cost Vanguard or iShares core bonds for stability (iShares even has an ESG bond index .. basically big bank and Treasury bonds). May even be some green lending. Could combine the last 2 approaches too.

Leroy--Brown

I really shouldn't look into ESG funds unless I want worse ROI.

ctnoxin

You should look into ESG funds if you want to avoid like all that stuff

buried_lede

You asked about more info and resources on the topic. Check out Engine No 1, which is an activist investment fund that had sone success influencing Exxon. If you google that, you will see lots of info about it.  You might also read up on ESG, short for Environment, social, governance. It is an attempt to analyze companies based on their environmental and social values and good governance.  That’s one approach. You may find you see companies differently but it gives you a quick picture using a set of criteria

DaemonTargaryen2024

I don't do anything in this regard. My investments are broadly, globally diversified. I donate time and money to causes I care about If you're interested in doing any sort of "ethical investing", ESG funds are the closest thing you're looking for. But ESG is far from perfect and not obviously your values may not perfectly align with the fund's framework.

RepsandRiot

The really crazy part is they just bought an existing bitcoin mining company Gryphon Digital Mining. On the homepage they list themselves as “ESG driven mining”. Wonder why the people who have single handedly sued ESG out of the English lexicon bought an ESG BTC miner?

Pepeshpe

The same people who buy ESG ETFs

Technical_Cry_5878

Interesting thread, great to see so many different takes on positioning right now. One point that stands out: it’s not always the flashy sectors (like AI or mega-cap tech) that deliver the most sustainable returns. Increasingly, investment resilience comes down to operational integrity...solid governance, risk management, and protecting downside in turbulent markets. That’s something Andrew Zatlin reviews (from Banyan Hill) often emphasizes. In his recent commentary, Zatlin highlights how companies with robust financial discipline, conservative debt levels, and proactive ESG measures, especially around data security and supply chains can outperform during uncertain times. He argues that these “quiet winners” often deliver compounding value where the flashy names stumble. So even amid moves toward high-growth areas, it might make sense to tilt a portion of your portfolio toward fundamentally stable companies - those disciplined, well-managed businesses that aren’t headline-buzz'd, but quietly build value over time. Would love to hear: for anyone here shifting capital, how are you weighting quality and defensibility vs. chasing growth narratives in the current environment?

WonkiDonki

You want ESG screened ETFs. They do as well as unscreened ETFs because they still hold almost all the market cap, & have broad sector diversification. Might find this JustETF primer helpful: [https://www.justetf.com/uk/news/etf/an-introduction-to-social-responsibility-investing-with-etfs.html](https://www.justetf.com/uk/news/etf/an-introduction-to-social-responsibility-investing-with-etfs.html)

LonelyFox18

As others have mentioned, there's plenty of ESG funds that apply these types of screens. However, I would note that some funds in Europe are re-thinking those screens. It's easy to sit up there in an ivory tower saying that people shouldn't invest in weapons manufacturers, but then when Russia decides to mount a full on invasion, suddenly people are changing their beliefs. Link to an article discussing this topic: [https://global.morningstar.com/en-gb/sustainable-investing/how-esg-funds-learned-love-weapons](https://global.morningstar.com/en-gb/sustainable-investing/how-esg-funds-learned-love-weapons)

TheKubesStore

ESG usually excludes firearms as well

Ok_Paramedic_5914

Oh OP, I assume you are young and still have an idealistic view of the world, which is sooo cute to see. However, you’ll soon realize that whatever stock, ETF, whether ESG or not, is contributing to human suffering. Sadly, that’s called capitalism my friend, and you can choose to listen to your convictions and not to partake in it and watch the sail ship before your eyes…or you can choose to put your beliefs to the side and join the depraved, morally corrupt party which is called investing, and make money like everybody else. You may think this is pessimistic, but I prefer the term realistic. No highly profitable business was ever built on morally sound, respectful or ethical values. IMO ESGs are a gimmick by funds companies to lure in younger folks into so called sustainable and ethical investments, which have sky high MERs.

clairesheffield420

You can buy some ESG fund

Skydance98

There absolutely are, though you may have to look around some. There's plenty of information on ESG Investing, and various funds out there, like ESGV, XVV, or EFIV and others such that make some attempts at ESG investing [https://global.morningstar.com/en-gb/sustainable-investing/how-to-exclude-weapons-from-your-portfolio](https://global.morningstar.com/en-gb/sustainable-investing/how-to-exclude-weapons-from-your-portfolio) [https://weaponfreefunds.org/](https://weaponfreefunds.org/) [https://etfdb.com/esg-investing/social-issues/weapons-involvement/](https://etfdb.com/esg-investing/social-issues/weapons-involvement/) [https://fossilfreefunds.org/blog/2025/05/22/bankrolling-bombs-how-your-401k-funds-war-machine-what-you-can-do-about-it.html](https://fossilfreefunds.org/blog/2025/05/22/bankrolling-bombs-how-your-401k-funds-war-machine-what-you-can-do-about-it.html) [https://fossilfreefunds.org/fund/spdr-sp-500-esg-etf/EFIV/investment-profile/FS0000G0NA/F0000156AN](https://fossilfreefunds.org/fund/spdr-sp-500-esg-etf/EFIV/investment-profile/FS0000G0NA/F0000156AN)

ShortTheVix4

Buddy, this is investing, not religion. You can make money or you can cling on to your beliefs, you can’t do both. Almost every company worth investing in will either directly or indirectly fund either war effort or some other unethical terrible thing. There are ESG etfs you can invest in that will try and limit the “bad” companies but those tend to underperform.

IronyElSupremo

Yr looking for what’s called an ESG screen ETF. Besides weapons, “ESG” will include no to low fossil fuels, tobacco, and likely nuclear activity too. SPDR has a version called EFIV which is a total ESG screened version of their S&P 500 ETFs (their SPLG having a 0.02% er), .. along with iShares XVV which is an ESG version (at 0.08% er) of their IVV S&P 500 etf at 0.03% er. What remain tends to have more tech, healthcare, etc..

Ferrari-murakami

Lol fuck your morals. Go invest in those ESG companies with all the transformers

Ancient_Bobcat_9150

I will delete this thread. I mainly invest in index funds, I have AI and tech stocks. Me asking a simple fucking question about other areas like agritech or industrial that can improve human condition does not mean I will go full SRI or ESG. If i directly asked for agritech or medical devices suggestion I would not have had so much dumb answers

Ancient_Bobcat_9150

Ok, maybe I am mistaken, but I thought that ESG mainly cares about how a company functions. How does it implement equality in its workforce, care for environmental impact, and have a transparent corporate structure? It is not SRI. I am not sure that companies like EssilorLuxottica (eyesight), Deere & co (agricultural modernization, Stantec (infrastructure resilience), Zimmer Biomet (prosthetics), ... are considered pure ESG companies

Oh_he_steal

You said you're looking for companies that make the world a better place. That's what ESG was all about.

Ancient_Bobcat_9150

I am not looking at ESG focused companies

Oh_he_steal

Oh man, you would have loved the ESG boom in \~2015.

notapersonaltrainer

It terms of actual [subsidies](https://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/fossil-fuels/renewable-energy-still-dominates-energy-subsidies-in-fy-2022/) solar and other renewable energy sources receive about $15.6 billion in federal subsidies compared to just $3.2 billion in subsidies for coal, oil, natural gas, and nuclear...combined. >Renewable subsidies more than doubled between FY 2016 and FY 2022, increasing to $15.6 billion in fiscal year 2022 from $7.4 billion in fiscal year 2016 (both in 2022 dollars). Federal subsidies and incentives to support renewable energy in fiscal year 2022 were almost 5 times higher than those for fossil energy, which totaled $3.2 billion in subsidies. And those meager subsidies to shore up production in the face of relentless ESG attacks turned out to be extremely important when we had to bail Europe out of its [Russian driven](https://foreignpolicy.com/2014/06/20/russias-quiet-war-against-european-fracking/) de-fracking, de-nuclearization, intermittent dependent campaign with a flotilla of fossil fuels.

think_up

Sure but my point is OP underperformed the market. Looks like they had the funds invested in a total world stock index and some “social index” which is probably an ESG fund with high fees and low performance that dragged their returns down.

NorthGuide9605

* OPTT memes often surface in “penny stock gambling” forums — it’s a **cult ticker** more than a serious investment. * Meme energy = **explosive but short-lived.** * When memes resurface, it usually signals a liquidity event incoming. * **Analytic Value:** Meme chatter precedes institutional distribution → If memes re-ignite, be early and be gone. * Accumulate small when OPTT is ignored (low volume, low chatter, low search interest). * Sell into *the moment of maximum meme hype + ESG/policy news*. * Never marry the stock — just extract and leave. OPTT is not an investment. It’s a recurring harvest cycle.

InterestingFee885

ESG funds have historically performed quite poorly in comparison to the broad market. You’re far better off making the most you can and donating to causes that actually try to do some good. You’re accomplishing absolutely nothing with the choice you’re making.

xiongchiamiov

Things like that fundamentally misunderstand the role of Vanguard. Vanguard doesn't choose what companies are invested in - investors do. What you need to do is convince a large proportion of investors to change from simple indexing strategies like "buy the entire US market" to ones that divest in one way or another from fossil fuels. That changes the investment risk significantly, but the other big problem is that with the interleaved nature of markets today it's difficult-to-impossible to filter these out. There are ESG funds but they over- and under-include companies depending on how you define your restrictions.

DaemonTargaryen2024

There’s really no such thing as an ethical *brokerage*. You can seek out ethical *funds*, but a brokerage is pretty much by definition unethical in the way you’re talking about. A single brokerage can have both ESG funds and regular funds which own shares in fossil fuels

330d

I've followed your DDs and successful plays on WSB, congrats on your success and rational approach. I too read the morningstar report, IMHO they stroke ESG risk with a broad brush briefly. With the current US admin being US first, they can tariff the fuck out of outsiders, yes, TACO so far, but... Remember Trump rambling about taking over Greenland, well that's Danish turf. NVO is carrying the whole DK sector alone, and Trump has negative views on them through this shenanigan alone, it may sound dumb but that's my reasoning. US being a single big market with strong IP laws carries outsized weight if lost, yes in theory you have RoW as your market but goodluck fighting copycats of your drugs and enforcing it in India, China or 20 EU countries IMHO.

BlueSonjo

That's  a valid opinion to have, I am just saying for Buffet is seems quite clear how he sees it and why to him there is no contradiction. I don't know how it is in the US, but at least in Europe, especially the Nordics, the asset management industry has a large variety of ESG oriented investment funds that are curated specifically to only invest in more moral, sustainable businesses and wouldn't include any company involved in scandals, military industry, big CO2 emmiters, etc. Maybe something like that would be good for you, they are basicaly ETFs that remove the companies they think have a negative impact. This is an example, there are several; https://www.nordeafunds.com/en/sustainablility/esg

AICHEngineer

ESG thinking like youre doing just creates a higher discount rate for someone else, who will take that free increased return while you over-allocate to something more aligned with your moral tastes. This is pure business, I bought UNH on the drop as well. Just because the US gov is cutting healthcare now doesnt mean its going to be in the future. My healthcare provider *is United*. I know how shitty Optum (their subsidiary) is, how shitty their claims approval is. Thats a clear sign to me how good they will be at driving profits, so its a good investment. I think it was and is oversold.

TurnstyledJunkpiled

Geely is not a shining example of ESG. https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2024/10/human-rights-ranking-electric-vehicle-industry/#:~:text=“Mining%20for%20the%20minerals%20used,these%20operations%20affect%20nearby%20communities.

TurnstyledJunkpiled

ESG evaluations are not standardized.

Illustrious-Run3591

as of 2022, 25% of all assets being traded were ESG. valued over $30 trillion. It is predicted to be over $40 trillion by 2030.

-Johnny_Utah-

And what EV company are you in that has come anywhere near PLTR gains over the past 8 months? Point being, PLTR was an obvious Trump trade as soon as he got re-elected. Point being, in this market there are a lot easier plays than chasing ESG trades. But by all means go buy some wind energy stocks after Trump’s fatwa against windmills last week.

Illustrious-Run3591

And yet, the majority of new vehicles are EV and the fastest energy growth on the planet is renewables... There is shitloads of money in ESG.