With the Phil Robertson, A&E and Duck Dynasty controversy raging, Faith Driven Consumer has created an online petition at istandwithphil.com for those who support Phil's side in the controversy, but the group has also come out with a faith based rating system for major companies with publicly traded stocks like Abercrombie & Fitch Co (NYSE: ANF), Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL), Nike Inc (NYSE: NKE), Victoria's Secret or L Brands Inc (NYSE: LB) and Walgreen Company (NYSE: WAG) scoring the lowest because they lean strongly against a "biblical world view" (See my previous articles: Large Cap Stocks Leaning Toward a Biblical World View: A Good Investment? BBBY, DG, FDO, KSS & LOW; Small Cap Stocks Leaning Toward a Biblical World View: A Good Investment? BLKIB, ARO, SMRT & ZLC). But what about the share performance for these stocks?
After all and at the end of last year, 77% Americans identified themselves as Christians in a Gallop poll while 7 out of 10 Americans described themselves as very or moderately religious. However, Pew Research has noted that one-fifth of the US public and a third of adults under 30 aren't affiliated with a religion. Given these conflicting statistics, companies or brands like A&E need to be mindful of who or what sorts of lifestyles they support or endorse because they could easily alienate a sizable chunk of consumers if they go overboard one way or another.
With that in mind, here is a look at the stocks that scored low because they lean strongly against a "biblical world view" according to Faith Driven Consumer:
Abercrombie & Fitch Co. A specialty retailer of casual apparel for men, women and kids, Abercrombie & Fitch Co's low ranking by Faith Driven Consumer should come as no surprise. Faith Driven Consumer is particularly critical that the CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch has made public comments regarding the brand's focus on "cool and popular" kids – to the exclusion of those who are plus-sized or don't otherwise meet certain societal standards for attractiveness. Moreover, Abercrombie & Fitch Co was criticized for resurrecting its controversial for-sale catalogue featuring barely clothed young adults in "highly sexualized contexts that cross the line into pornography." Finally, Faith Driven Consumer expressed concern about the Abercrombie & Fitch Co's "full embrace of the political and social goals of the homosexual, bisexual and transgender movement – including same-sex marriage" plus the lack of use of the word "Christmas" in its seasonal promotions. Abercrombie & Fitch Co has also not been kind to investors as shares are down 30.3% since the start of the year and is up 46.4% over the past five years.
Apple Inc. Needing no introduction, Apple Inc was criticized by Faith Driven Consumer for being a "staunch supporter of same-sex marriage and the homosexual and transgender political and social agenda in the workplace and beyond" as well as actively donating to the efforts of those who opposed Proposition 8 in California, which defined marriage as the union of one man and one woman. Apple Inc was also accused of promoting internet pornography by Faith Driven Consumer and its listed as one of the "Top Ten Worst Advertisers" in 2012 by the Parents Television Council. However, it was noted that employees have been allowed to form a Christian employee group. Apple Inc is up 6.7% since the start of the year and up 530.7% over the past five years – meaning long term investors are at least happy with the stock's long term performance.
Nike Inc. A designer, developer and worldwide marketer and seller of footwear, apparel, equipment, accessories and services, Nike Inc was praised by Faith Driven Consumer for encouraging youth (especially girls) to participate in sports, for being deeply committed to good environmental stewardship and for having advertisement that is generally wholesome and non-offensive. However, Faith Driven Consumer also accused Nike Inc of being one of the most "vocal corporate supporters of abortion in America," for forming a PAC fund to donate $280,000 to the current effort in Oregon to redefine marriage and for not using the word "Christmas" in its advertising. Nevertheless, investors may not care because the stock is up 50.5% since the start of the year and up 203% over the past five years.
Victoria's Secret or L Brands Inc. A specialty retailer of women's intimate and other apparel, beauty and personal care products and accessories, L Brands Inc operates in two segments: Victoria's Secret and Bath & Body Works. However, Faith Driven Consumer criticized L Brands Inc for being a strong supporter of provocative materials, a staunch advocate for the "homosexual agenda" and a direct supporter of groups tied to abortion. For those reasons, Faith Driven Consumer recommends Dillard's, Inc (NYSE: DDS) as a better alternative for purchasing similar items to Limited Brands products. L Brands Inc is up 30.15% since the start of the year and up 552.3% over the past five years while Dillard's, Inc is up 15.5% since the start of the year and up 2,459.5% over the past five years – meaning investors should have also preferred the latter over the former.
Walgreen Company. Drug store chain Walgreen Company was praised by Faith Driven Consumer for its significant emphasis on philanthropy and service in its local communities. However, Walgreen Company was also criticized for supporting the Chicago Foundation for Women (which teaches women and girls "about services, including abortion"), for partnering with the the United Way (which indirectly gives to Planned Parenthood), for having a 100% score from the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index and for being the parent company of drugstore.com, which sells pornographic DVDs as well as other sexually explicit items. Faith Driven Consumer sees CVS Caremark Corporation (NYSE: CVS) as the more a "faith-friendly option." For investors though, Walgreen Company is up 55.7% since the start of the year and up 120.9% over the past five years while CVS Caremark is up 46.8% since the start of the year and up 163.3% over the past five years – meaning the latter has been a better choice even for faithless investors.
Finally, here is a look at the performance of all five stocks who strongly lean against a biblical world view against the performance of the Dow:
As you can see from the above performance chart, only Abercrombie & Fitch Co has underperformed the Dow over the past five years plus it and L Brands Inc appear to have kept pace with the Dow over the long long term while Apple, Nike and Walgreen Company has far exceeded the Dow's performance.
So does it really matter whether or not a stock leans toward or against a biblical world view when it comes to investment performance? You be the judge or better yet, just leave it up to god to judge!
No comments:
Post a Comment