A growing number of socially conscious investors are beginning to look into targeted ETFs as a way to combine their beliefs with an investment objective.
“What we found was that a lot of investors are looking to connect with their beliefs,” Richard Cea, Head of InsightShares ETFs at UBS, said at the Inside ETFs 2018 conference. “They were looking to align their portfolios with their values, but offerings that are out there makes it very challenging for them.”
Consequently, in an attempt to meet the demand, UBS has recently come out with the InsightShares LGBT Employment Equality ETF (NYSEArca: PRID), which includes large- and mid-capitalization U.S. stocks of companies with workplaces that promote and provide equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender, or LGBT, employees based on their score in the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s Corporate Equality Index.
UBS has also added another cause-focused product, the InsightShares Patriotic Employers ETF (NYSEArca: HONR), which is comprised of large- and mid-capitalization U.S. stocks of companies with policies and practices determined to be Military Friendly.
“We all agree we want to support our veterans,” Cea said. “The other part is companies are not just doing it because it is the right thing to do. They are doing it because it is the smart thing to do. They are enhancing their talent pool, and thus, we hope, would lead to better economic performance.”
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