June Monthly Commentary
Global equities were modestly up in June with the MSCI ACWI Index returning 0.5%. At home, small-cap stocks bested large-cap equities with the S&P 500 Index gaining 0.6% and the Russell 2000 Index returning 3.5%. In Europe, stocks sold off as the European Central Bank hinted it may slow down its quantitative easing program as […]
Second Reduction in Spending Rate for UUA Administered Trusts
The second reduction in the trust payout percentage is set to take effect with the October 2017 recurring payment cycle. The annual payment (spending rate) for UUA Administered Trusts will decrease from 4.75% to 4.50% for fiscal year 2018. As stated in the posting dated February 29, 2016, the Board, acting on the recommendation from […]
3rd Annual Treasurer’s Report on 2014 Business Resolution by Tim Brennan, Treasurer & CFO
At the 2014 UUA General Assembly, the delegates passes a business resolution entitled “Fossil Fuel Divestment.” The resolution called on the President and Treasurer to “report to each General Assembly from 2015 through 2019 on our Association’s progress on the resolutions.” This is the third such report. The 2015 and 2016 reports were presented in […]
May Monthly Commentary
Global equities forged ahead in May with international stocks continuing to lead the way. The MSCI EAFE Index returned 3.7% on the month as investors took comfort in the victory of centrist candidate Emmanuel Macron in the French presidential elections. Emerging market equities posted their fifth consecutive monthly gain with the MSCI EM Index rising […]
A Huge Vote on Climate Change by ExxonMobil Investors
Financial firms lead shareholder rebellion against ExxonMobil climate change policies By Steven Mufson Washington Post ExxonMobil failed to fend off a shareholder rebellion over climate change, as investors with 62.3 percent of shares voted to instruct the oil giant to report on the impact of global measures designed to keep climate change to 2 […]
ConocoPhillips Shareholders to Consider Climate-Related Lobbying and Executive Perks
Kathy Mulvey, Climate Accountability Campaign Manager, Union of Concerned Scientists Today ConocoPhillips holds a virtual annual shareholders’ meeting, where the company will face two significant climate-related resolutions. These resolutions intersect with some of the key findings and recommendations of UCS’s 2016 report The Climate Accountability Scorecard. ConocoPhillips responded to the report shortly after its release, […]
Chevron, ExxonMobil Face Growing Investor Concerns About Climate Risk
Kathy Mulvey, Climate Accountability Campaign Manager, Union of Concerned Scientists In preparation for their annual meetings on May 31, both Chevron and ExxonMobil opposed every climate-related resolution put forth by their shareholders. In a previous post, I wrote that Chevron continues to downplay climate risks while attempting to convince shareholders that the company’s political activities—which include […]
April Monthly Commentary
Global Bonds Citi World Gov’t 1.3% 2.9 -3.6 -1.1 -0.6 Global equities continued their steady march upwards in April, driven by a positive uptick in economic indicators and moderating geopolitical concerns. Non-US stocks led the charge with international developed equities posting gains of 2.5%, propelled by a late-month rally in Europe as investors took […]
SRIC Conducts Due Diligence on HPQ and HPE
On November 23, 2016, the Socially Responsible Investing Committee (SRIC) announced that HP Inc. (HPQ) was no longer going to be screened out of the Unitarian Universalist Common Endowment Fund (UUCEF). While we did announce that HPQ had become eligible for investment, the SRIC has not yet allowed our managers to purchase shares of HPQ. […]
March Monthly Commentary
US equities went out like a lamb in March after coming in like a lion at the beginning of the year. Domestic stocks fell broadly in the aftermath of the GOP’s failure to repeal and replace Obamacare as investors questioned the likelihood and efficacy of future tax reforms in light of the ongoing political gridlock. […]