The general relationship between sustainability and financial performance has been well examined, and there doesn't seem to be any general significant tradeoff between the two. However, the results are mixed and the many ways of defining both sustainability and financial performance has provided room for different interpretations and methodologies. This study aims to use a relatively new measure of sustainability, Morningstar Sustainability Rating (MSR), and to see if there is a relationship with the risk-adjusted return of actively traded equity funds in Sweden. To calculate risk-adjusted return the Fama & French three factor model was used. After the two variables were established, a descriptive statistics analysis and a regression analysis was conducted, with two portfolios of different sustainability scores. The results were quite the opposite of that suggested by the general literature and our hypothesis that there would indeed be a positive relationship between the variables. However, we list a couple of potential reasons for this. The risk-free rate is lower today than at the time of many other studies. This could affect the outcome of the analysis. The sustainability measures can also differ quite significantly, and value aspects differently. A relatively new measure, with an “updated” view of sustainability, could therefore yield a different result than slightly older ones.

A rapidly changing global agribusiness environment creates a challenge for commercially oriented agricultural producers to improve business acumen through strategy development and execution. A best management practice is broadly defined as a practice that is considered to be most effective in improving business performance. This study examined the relationship of financial leverage and management practices with financial performance on a group of Minnesota and Northwest farms. Management practices were classified into seven broad categories of management, namely strategic planning, financial management, networking, marketing, technology adoption, family relationship and human resources management. Using multiple regression analysis on 242 observations, the effects of financial leverage and management practices on revenues and profits were determined. While the relationship of best management practices with profitability is less conclusive, this study concludes statistically significant relationships between management practices and financial performance, measured in terms of revenues. There exist positive and statistically significant returns to business planning, transition management, customer management and family relationship management. / Master of Science

The purpose of this research was to explore the relationship between diversity within the boards of directors of American companies and firm financial growth. Specifically, this study sought to determine the question of whether a relationship exists between medium-term growth in a firm’s accounting returns and the inclusion of a) minority women, b) ethnic minorities, or c) women on its board of directors. The supporting analysis for this inquiry included an in-depth examination of the five-year growth rates in ROE, ROA, and profit margins of 439 companies between 2011 and 2015. These companies operate across eight industry groups and are listed either on the New York Stock Exchange or the NASDAQ stock index. Results of the statistical analyses show significant increases in financial growth for companies with gender- and ethnically-diverse boards (when compared to boards consisting solely of white men). However, based on effect sizes, the most significant increases were found in the profit margins of companies with minority directors.

Three Essays in Energy and Environmental Economics Author: Mgr. Lukáš Rečka Supervisor: Mgr. Milan Ščasný, Ph.D. Academic Year: 2018/2019 Abstract This thesis consists of three articles that share the main theme - energy and environment. The dissertation aims mainly at the Czech energy system and analyses it development after the Velvet Revolution and its possible future development. The first article applies Logarithmic Mean Divisia Index decomposition to analyses the main driving forces of significant reduction in air quality pollutants during the transition of the Czech economy towards market economy in the 1990s. It continues then to investigate how the driving forces affected the emissions volumes during succeeding the post-transition period up to 2016. The second article reacts on the 2015 governmental decision to lift brown coal mining limits in the North Bohemia coal basin. The paper analyses the impacts of maintaining the ban on mining coal reserves and compares them with three alternative options that would each weaken the environmental protections of the ban. The impacts of each of these alternative governmental propostions are analysed on the Czech energy system, the fuel- and the technology-mix, the costs of generating energy, related emissions and external costs associated with the emissions....

The public's interest and awareness in sustainable options is growing, resulting in a higher demand for high levels of sustainability in companies. Therefore, the question whether there is a profit to be made from being sustainable is becoming increasingly more relevant. Earlier research shows ambiguous results, with the majority indicating either positive or no connection between sustainability and profitability. Folksam’s index of responsible enterprise was used to get an assessment of the environmental and social performance of Swedish firms registered on the Swedish stock exchange between the years 2006 and 2013, where 303 individual firms were included in total. In order to measure the profitability of the included firms, two traditional financial ratios, ROA and ROE was used. A third financial ratio, Nissim & Penman’s RNOA was also used to include a more sophisticated and less researched measure. The differences between these measurements was analyzed to see whether they can explain the relationship between sustainability and profitability differently. Firstly, the reasoning behind the chosen topic of study is discussed, and the problems are formulated. Next, a literature review is conducted in order to better understand the state of research related to this study. Key concepts such as sustainability and measurements of profitability is explained in depth, and earlier research on the area is reviewed. The theoretical reference of this study is based on stakeholder and legitimacy theory. This leads up to research hypotheses to help answer whether there is a difference between RNOA and ROA, and if it is profitable to be sustainable. Our practical method discusses the data and leads to the usage of a fixed and random effects model for estimating the relationships previously mentioned. The result indicates that there is no relationship between sustainability and profitability. However, empirical evidence shows a difference in using RNOA instead of ROA, indicating that RNOA could possibly be a more accurate measure of profitability. Furthermore, our results indicate that a company can “greenwash” their organization by investing in sustainable options to legitimize their operations in the eyes of their stakeholders.

O objetivo desta tese é investigar a relação entre a remuneração dos executivos e o desempenho financeiro das empresas, no contexto do mercado brasileiro. A premissa é que o sistema de remuneração pode ajudar a direcionar os esforços dos executivos para os objetivos estratégicos do negócio, contribuindo para que a companhia alcance níveis superiores de desempenho financeiro. A amostra não-probabilística é formada por 44 empresas industriais. Elas foram selecionadas dentre as eleitas como As 150 Melhores Empresas para Você Trabalhar no Brasil, em 2007. Os dados da pesquisa são secundários e foram extraídos de dois bancos de dados: a) Programa de Estudos em Gestão de Pessoas (Progep), vinculado à Fundação Instituto de Administração (FIA); b) Fundação Instituto de Pesquisas Contábeis, Atuariais e Financeiras (FIPECAFI). Para operacionalizar a variável independente remuneração, são utilizados, além do salário mensal e do salário variável, três índices criados especialmente para este trabalho: benefícios, carreira e desenvolvimento. Esses índices medem o acesso a benefícios; a mecanismos de estímulo e suporte à carreira; a mecanismos de estímulo à educação e ao desenvolvimento profissional. Trata-se de itens oferecidos pelas empresas a seus diretores, vice-presidentes e presidentes, os quais são denominados, neste trabalho, de executivos. Esses dados de remuneração referem-se ao exercício de 2006. Para operacionalizar a variável desempenho financeiro, são utilizados três indicadores contábeis crescimento das vendas, retorno sobre patrimônio líquido e margem líquida sobre as vendas dos exercícios sociais de 2006 e de 2007. O porte das companhias é utilizado como variável de controle e é medido pelo logaritmo natural do número de funcionários. A hipótese da pesquisa de que existe uma relação positiva e significante entre a remuneração dos executivos e o desempenho financeiro das empresas, no contexto do mercado brasileiro, é verificada por meio de um conjunto de testes estatísticos: de igualdade de médias, análise de correlação e análise de regressão. Os resultados do teste de Mann-Whitney não apresentam evidências de que existe relação entre as variáveis. A análise de correlação de Pearson mostra associações fracas e negativas entre as seguintes variáveis: a) índice de carreira e crescimento das vendas de 2006; b) índice de carreira e retorno sobre patrimônio líquido de 2006; c) índice de desenvolvimento e retorno sobre patrimônio líquido de 2006. Já a análise de correlação de Spearman aponta: a) associação fraca e positiva entre índice de benefícios e margem líquida sobre as vendas de 2006; b) associação fraca e negativa entre índice de desenvolvimento e retorno sobre patrimônio líquido de 2006. Os resultados da análise de regressão linear múltipla não permitem comprovar a existência de relação positiva e significante entre a remuneração dos executivos e o desempenho financeiro das empresas. As contribuições deste trabalho estão em produzir conceitos mais amplos para operacionalizar as variáveis, estudar a relação no contexto do mercado brasileiro e abrir perspectivas para a realização de novos trabalhos acadêmicos. / This thesis is intended to investigate the relation between remuneration of executives and the financial performance of the companies in the context of the Brazilian marketplace. The underlying assumption is that the remuneration system may help to direct the efforts of executives towards the business strategic purposes. Hence, it will contribute for the company to attain higher levels of financial performance. The non-probabilistic sample is comprised of 44 industrial organizations. They have been selected out from the 150 Best Companies to Work For in Brazil in 2007. The research data are secondary and have been taken from two databases: a) Programa de Estudos em Gestão de Pessoas (Progep) linked to Fundação Instituto de Administração (FIA); b) Fundação Instituto de Pesquisas Contábeis, Atuariais e Financeiras (FIPECAFI). In order to operationalize the independent remuneration variable, in addition to using the monthly salary and the variable salary, three indexes that have been especially created for this paper were used: benefits, career and development. These indexes measure the access to benefits, the fostering mechanisms and the support to career, and also the mechanisms fostering the education and the professional development. These are items the companies offer their officers, vice presidents and CEOs, which are referred to in this paper as executives. These remuneration data refer to the fiscal year of 2006. In order to operationalize the financial performance variable, three accounting indicators are used growth of sales, return on equity and net margin for the fiscal years of 2006 and 2007. The companies size is used as a control variable and is measured by the natural logarithm of the number of employees. The research hypothesis that there is a positive and significant relation between the remuneration of executives and the financial performance of companies in the context of the Brazilian marketplace is verified by means of a set of statistical tests of: the Mann-Whitney test, correlation analysis and regression analysis. The results of the Mann-Whitney test do not present any evidences that there actually is a relation between variables. The Pearson correlation analysis shows weak and negative associations between the following variables: a) index of career and growth of sales in 2006; b) index of career and return on equity in 2006; c) index of development and return on equity in 2006. While Spearman correlation analysis points out: a) weak and positive association between the index of benefits and the net margin in 2006; b) weak and negative association between the development index and return on equity in 2006. The results of the multiple regression analysis do not allow to evidence the existence of a positive and significant relation between the remuneration of executives and the financial performance of companies. The contributions of this thesis are in producing broader concepts in order to operationalize the variables, study the relation in the context of the Brazilian marketplace and open up perspectives for the development of new academic studies.

The determinants that affect the financial performance of an insurance company are complicated due to the intangible nature of insurance products and the lack of transparency in the market. Consequently, the financial performance of insurance companies is important to various stakeholders such as policyholders, insurance intermediaries and policymakers. This study aims to investigate the determinants of financial performance of insurance companies based on their financial strength rating performance. The empirical data are drawn from A.M. Best Insurance Report Online: Non- US Database. The sample consists of 57 insurers in the United Kingdom over the period of 2006 to 2010. The analyses include eight firm-specific variables, which are leverage, profitability, liquidity, size, reinsurance, growth, type of business and organisational form. Rating transition matrices and regression models are employed in this study. Rating transition analysis demonstrates a significant degree of rating changes, as reflected in the rating fluctuations. Based on the empirical results, this study establishes that profitability, liquidity, size and organisational form are statistically significant determinants of financial performance of insurance companies in the United Kingdom. This study recommends an alternative to measure the size of an insurance company, which is based on the gross premium written. In addition, this study provides insights into the effects of the global financial crisis on the financial performance of the insurance companies.

At present, corporate social responsibility has become an important area of modern corporateresearch theory, and the development of CSR activities all over the world is remarkable.While the relationship between corporate social responsibility and corporate financialperformance is still ambiguous.This study reviewed the development of corporate social responsibility and literatures whichfocused on related researches; used the stakeholder theory as the theoretical basis and contentanalysis as the method basis; chose the accounting indicators of 839 Chinese listed companiesin 2010 as samples; then did regression analysis to measure the relationship between Chinesecompanies’ social responsibilities and their financial performance.According to the research results, except implementing the social responsibilities toshareholders has outstanding positive impact on Chinese listed companies’ financialperformance and implementing social responsibilities to employees has relatively positiveimpact; the implementations of social responsibilities to other stakeholders have no signallyimpact on Chinese listed companies’ financial performance. These results show that the CSRsituation in China is still not optimistic. / Program: Magisterutbildning i företagsekonomi

The use of non-financial performance measurements (such as quality, delivery and customer satisfaction) has received a lot of attention from practitioners and academics over the last two decades in developed countries. This research project is an exploratory study in Libya to investigate the use of non-financial performance measurements (NFPMs) in a developing country's commercial banking sector. The Libyan service sector is the second contributor to the Libyan Gross Domestic Product (GDP) after the oil sector. Within the service sector, the commercial banking sector has been playing a significant role in the development of the Libyan economy. This research project aims to: 1) explore the current use of NFPMs in the Libyan commercial banking sector (LCBS); 2) determine the environmental factors influencing the use of NFPMs in the LCBS; and 3) explore the impact of NFPMs on financial performance measurements (FPMs) in the LCBSA grounded theory methodology was adopted and four case studies (two State owned banks and two private banks) were conducted. Each case study was analysed according to a structured set of coding procedures (based on the grounded theory approach of Strauss and Corbin, 1990) and substantive hypotheses emerged for each case study. A cross-case analysis of the four case studies gave rise to the following nineteen formal hypotheses which (together with the model developed from the four case studies) are the main findings of this study: H1 The limitations of FPMs are one of the major motives leading to a bank's use of NFPMs H2 A more competitive environment is one of the main motives for managers in a bank using NFPMs. H3 Management's knowledge of the relationship between NFPMs and FPMs is one of the major motives leading to the use of NFPMs in a bank. 11 H4 Demanding customers are one of the major motives leading to the use of NFPMs in a bank. H5 The nature of the banking industry as a service oriented industry is one of the major motives leading to the use of NFPMs in a bank. H6 Lower level managers in a bank tend to use NFPMs more than middle and higher level managers do. H7 Operational experience of management, competence of management, management with more authority, top management's interference, stability of management, and collective working group positively affect a bank's use of NFPMs. H8 New regulations and strategies of the Central Bank and the uncertainty of the economic environment positively affect a bank's use of NFPMs. H9 Some of the Central Bank's old regulations, over-control and interference of the Central Bank, information shortage, weakness of infrastructure, traditional educational system, State ownership and the general public's lack of banking knowledge negatively affect a bank's use of NFPMs. H10 The development of human resource strategies to be more service-oriented is associated with a bank's use of NFPMs. H11 The development of the reward system to be linked with non-financial performance and to be more service-oriented is associated with a bank's use of NFPMs. H12 The development of the banking system (operating, information and reporting system) is associated with a bank's use of NFPMs. H13 The development of a bank's management accounting information is associated with its use of NFPMs. H14 The development of a bank's organisational structure is associated with its use of NFPMs. H15 The adoption of advanced management practices is associated with a bank's use of NFPMs. H16 Use of NFPMs encourages a bank to diversify and improve its range of services. H17 Use of NFPMs encourages a bank to adopt advanced technology. H18 Use of NFPMs improves a bank's profitability, customers' deposits and other FPMs in the long-term. H19 Use of NFPMs leads to an increase in a bank's capital expenditure.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is a new topic in finance which can be viewed from two different perspectives: that of the business (CSR), and that of the individual investor (Socially Responsible Investing, SRI). The evidence from this study suggested that in the short-term, there were no significant price effects on the SRI stocks around the announcement dates of the SRI constituent lists. In contrast, the returns of SRI portfolios over the sample period seemed to be superior to those of conventional firms. The regression analysis found that generally the SRI coefficients were insignificant; however using one of the models during the fifteen year period, it was found that SRI constituents attained a ROE that was 11.18% higher than conventional peers as well as a ROA that was 1.824% lower than conventional firms. When the period was restricted to 2004-2009 it was found that social performance was positively (and sometimes significantly) correlated with ROE.