Syftet med denna uppsats är att undersöka eventuella samband mellan svenska noterade bolags hållbarhetsarbete och hållbarhetsredovisning utifrån ESG hållbarhetsbetyg, primärt i relation till uppfattat bolagsvärde och sekundärt även i relation till bolagsstorlek vad gäller nettoomsättning och redovisat eget kapital. Fåtalet snarlikastudier har utförts på den svenska marknaden vilket motiverade syftet i denna uppsats.  Metod: Studien tillämpade en kvantitativ forskningsstrategi med utgångspunkt från nyckeltalsdata och ESG-betyginsamlade från S&P Global  2016-2020. Finansiella nyckeltalsdata inklusive estimerat bolagsvärde insamlades från Morningstar Direct. Regressionsanalyser och Pearsons korrelationsanalys genomfördes i Excel och testades mot fyra hypoteser.  Resultat & slutsats: Inga samband påvisades mellan bolagsvärde och ESG. Samband mellan nyckeltalen för eget kapital och nettoomsättning i förhållande till bolagsstorlek kunde konstateras, men inte i samband med ESG hållbarhetsbetyg. Slutsatsen blev att samband saknades på grund av de motsatta effekter som hållbarhetsarbete har på kort respektive lång sikt, där hållbarhet innebär minskat bolagsvärde på kort sikt men ökat bolagsvärde på lång sikt. En annan slutsats var att framtida analyser behöver bygga på separerade snarare än aggregerade EGS-betyg som analyseras branschvis.  Studiens bidrag: Studien tillför ytterligare kunskap till forskningen genom iakttagelsen att relationen mellan ESG och bolagsvärde kan variera beroende på bolagsstorlek, tidsperspektiv och bransch. / The aim of this thesis is to investigate possible connections between Swedish listed companies' sustainability work and sustainability reporting based on ESG's sustainability rating, primarily in relation to perceived company value and secondarily also in relation to company size in terms of net sales and reported equity. Few similar studies have been performed on the Swedish market, which justified the aim of this essay. Method: The study applied a quantitative research strategy based on key figure data and ESG ratings collected from S&P Global 2016-2020. Financial key figures data including estimated company value were collected from Morningstar Direct. Regression analyzes and Pearson's correlation analysis were performed in Excel and tested against four hypotheses. Results & conclusion: No relationship was demonstrated between company value and ESG. A relationship between the key ratios for equity and net sales in relation to company size could be established, but not in connection with the ESG sustainability rating. The conclusion was that there was a lack of connection due to the opposite effects that sustainability work has in the short and long term, respectively, where sustainability means reduced company value in the short term but increased company value in the long term. Another conclusion was that future analyzes need to be based on separate rather than aggregated EGS scores that are analyzed by industry. Contribution of the thesis: The study adds additional knowledge to the research by observing that the relationship between ESG and company value can vary depending on company size, time perspective and industry.

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This study examines the implementation of ESG ratings and their impact on the Swedishstock market within the real estate, banking, and industrial sectors. ESG ratings assesscompanies' sustainability based on environmental impact, social responsibility, and corporategovernance. The aim is to analyze the relationship between ESG ratings and stockperformance, as well as investors' behavior in investment decisions. The study focuses onlarge companies within the Large Cap segment in the Swedish market during the period of2016-2019. The methods include qualitative interviews to gather investors' perspectives anddescriptive analysis to quantitatively examine returns based on ESG scores. The study findsno statistically significant relationship between ESG and companies returns. Investors'decisions are not solely based on ESG ratings but also on other factors.

A quantitative study investigating the effect Covid-19 had on the relationship between ESG and financial performance in the Nordic market. In order to achieve this objective, Tobin’s Q was used as a proxy of financial performance and tested against Refinitiv Eikon's ESG scores, which are made up of one ESG score and three separate pillars, Environmental (ENV), Social (SOC), and Governance (GOV). Based on 5 criteria 216 unique firms from the Nordic market were selected resulting in 862 observations over the years 2018-2021. The data was tested through four regression models, representing the different scores of ESG, ENV, SOC and GOV. To see the effect Covid-19 had on the relationship an interaction term was used. The results show that Covid-19 did not have a significant effect on the relationship for any of the scores of ESG and Tobin's Q. The results also showed a significant negative relationship between Tobin's Q and ESG, ENV and SOC. While Tobin's Q and GOV presented a non-significant negative relationship. In conclusion, a high ESG score did not result in a higher market value for organizations in the Nordic market and the Covid-19 pandemic did not have a significant effect on the relationship.

Background: Sustainability in business has become an essential part for firms to consider, as stakeholder’s concerns are increasing, and the use of ESG scores has increased in the last years. Prior research mostly examines the European and US market and the relationship between ESG score and financial performance. Hence, a gap regarding ESG scores effect on stock performance, and possibilities for sustainable strategic management, was found on the Indian market as an emerging economy.  Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to examine the relationship between ESG, stock performance, and sustainability reporting of Indian companies. Thus, enable a deeper understanding of the impact of sustainable development on firms.  Method: This research has followed positivism and social constructionism, with a deductive approach, and both a quantitative and qualitative method. Purposive sampling is used, by collecting the stock prices, volatility and ESG scores for firms from the index Nifty 50. Two portfolios were conducted from the samplings, representing the firms with the highest and the lowest ESG scores, along with an analysation of the individual companies. The data were analysed in STATA by an OLS regression analysis and Pearson correlation test, to test the hypotheses. Observations of the firm’s sustainability reports were analysed to gather their sustainable actions.  Conclusion: The results indicated that ESG have a positive effect on stock prices, on the Indian market. Thus, firms would benefit from achieving a higher ESG-score. However, due to varying results regarding volatility, results could not be determined whether firms achieve any improved stability from a higher ESG score. The findings also show that there are differences between high and low ESG scored firms regarding SDGs, policy frameworks, anti-corruption and the ESG approach. Which indicate opportunities for Indian firms to develop their sustainable actions, to increase value creation for stakeholders.

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The purpose of this thesis is to examine the Swedish sustainable and responsible investment (SRI) market focusing on pension and life insurance companies. The purpose is to understand how the companies work with SRI and if there is a process in place to follow-up the investments and their possible impact. In the thesis a qualitative research method is conducted as the purpose is to understand the behaviour of the different companies relating to SRI. The empirical study consists of interviews with representatives from larger companies in the pension and life insurance space focusing on how they conduct their SRI work. The finding in this paper is that there are similarities regarding SRI strategies in place however the type of insurance being offered affects how they work. This thesis found that all companies follow-up their investments to ensure that they are sustainable. Further the process of measuring the impact of SRI is very much still in its early stage but there are initiatives taken to measure both soft and hard measurements. The future of the SRI market seems to be moving towards more transparency, both from possible legislation as well as initiatives. The other key area of focus when looking to the future of SRI in Sweden, is the sustainable development goals created by the UN.

This research study examines the risk-adjusted performance and portfolio risk of 60 large cap equity funds - mutual funds - under Swedish management. These funds apply environmental, social and governance criteria in their investment strategies. The empirical context concerns the COVID-19 situation and the context is divided into three periods, before, during and after the COVID-19 crisis. The ESG concept, modern portfolio and stakeholder theories are used to develop a theoretical base for the study on which the hypotheses are based which are summarized in a conceptual model. Secondary data regarding ESG and risk-adjusted returns are collected for each fund based on which the sharpe ratios and standard deviations (total or portfolio risk) for each fund are calculated. While there are associations between ESG and portfolio risk, no associations are found between ESG and sharpe ratios. As a result, this confirms the fact that ESG could be characterized as a mechanism to protect against downside risk in poor economic times but no association was established that ESG could also be used as a mechanism to determine efficiency in terms of risk-adjusted performance

Traditional investing is mainly concerned with creating a financial return on investment for the investor and hence disregards other non-financial issues such as adverse environmental and societal impacts. This negligence of negative impacts in the investment process is beginning to be addressed with the emergence of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing, socially responsible investing (SRI), and other sustainable investing types. Therefore, this thesis aims to establish if and how large Nordic institutional asset owners integrate sustainability and ESG concerns into their respective investment processes. Moreover, a secondary goal is to determine what type of investing the current investment processes of the seasset owners resembles most. The thesis utilizes a qualitative methodology in order to gather the necessary data-points. All the information in this thesis comes from publicly available sources such as annual reports and sustainability reports. The study found that the asset owners analyzed utilize ESG integration in their investment processes. The asset owners have specific guidelines that pertain to ESG issues, and screen for non-compliance to ensure that investments with potentially detrimental effects on society are excluded from their respective portfolios. Aminority of the asset owners also utilizes best-in-class screening to identify investments with the strongest ESG performance. Hence, the asset owners, in general, are located between SRI and ESG investing on the motivation spectrum.

Thesis advisor: Richard Spinello / This thesis studies the effects of greenwashing in the fashion industry on the Generation Z cohort. It aims to understand the behaviors, motivations, attitudes, and processes behind their clothing shopping habits, including external and internal factors. It seeks to broaden the discussion around greenwashing in the 21st century, especially in the current age where firms are being evaluated on their Environmental, Social, and Governance practices. Therefore, it includes an extensive research background, including a brief history of greenwashing as a marketing tactic, the fashion industry, a study of clothing supply chains, and finally background information on Generation Z and their generational characteristics.This, as well as the small research study conducted at Boston College, all inform the conclusions of this study. / Thesis (BA) — Boston College, 2022. / Submitted to: Boston College. College of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Departmental Honors. / Discipline: Environmental Studies.