Impact Investing in Public Equities: A Case Study on Engine No. 1

Laurens Müller

Student thesis: Master thesis

Abstract

Engine No. 1 is one of the first to provide an ETF for the purpose of combining impact investing with public equities. Following an active ownership approach, the goal is to generate impact through proxy voting. A vote is considered an impact vote, when Engine No. 1 successfully votes against the management recommendation in order to promote change aligned with the objectives of impact investing. This study examines whether the institutional holding structure of firms can facilitate impact votes and how the market reacts to them. Total institutional ownership and its level of concentration are found to be positively related to the probability of an impact vote. Yet, no statistically significant market reaction in connection to the impact vote is found.

EducationsMSc in Finance and Investments, (Graduate Programme) Final Thesis
LanguageEnglish
Publication date2023
Number of pages38
SupervisorsLena Jaroszek