Brown Advisory has been a signatory to the PRI (Principles for Responsible Investment) since 2014. Each year, we complete a rigorous disclosure of our sustainable investing practices as part of our obligation as a signatory, and PRI in turn provides an evaluation of our practices and rates us relative to our peers in a variety of categories.
We are pleased to share the PRI’s 2021 assessment of Brown Advisory’s sustainable investing practices; our scorecard is provided below.
Key Takeaways
- After a long delay (results from the 2021 reporting cycle were just released in September 2022), PRI has overhauled its scoring system to help address the “grade inflation” that had occurred in the program over the years. As noted below, scores are now provided in a bell-curve driven “star” system rather than with letter grades. Notably, numerical scoring results for each advisor, versus the industry as a whole, provide a more helpful view of an asset manager’s relative strength versus peers.
- Broadly, we feel that our scores reflect our firm’s broad-based efforts to adopt sustainable investing principles across all aspects of our business. While we hope to earn more 5-star ratings over time, we expect to have fewer of them currently, simply due to the fact that Brown Advisory has a broad mix of clients, some of whom do not wish to pursue sustainable investing. Also, since this disclosure was filed in early 2021, we have done meaningful work in areas such as proxy voting, climate strategy and fixed income ESG research, which we believe may bolster our ratings going forward in a variety of categories.
| Module Name | Brown Advisory 2021 Score | Brown Advisory Percentile Score |
Industry Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Investment & Stewardship Policy | ★★★★ | 68 | 60 |
| Indirect – Manager Selecting, Appointing & Monitoring | |||
| Listed Equity - Passive | ★★★★ | 81 | 57 |
| Listed Equity - Active | ★★★★ | 82 | 67 |
| Fixed Income - Passive | ★★★★ | 79 | 43 |
| Fixed Income - Active | ★★★★ | 80 | 57 |
| Private Equity | ★★★★ | 76 | 63 |
| Real Estate | ★★★★ | 76 | 62 |
| Infrastructure | ★★★★ | 75 | 71 |
| Hedge Funds | ★★★★★ | 92 | 34 |
| Direct & Active Ownership Modules | |||
| Listed Equity - Active Fundamental - Incorporation | ★★★★ | 79 | 71 |
| Listed Equity - Active Fundamental - Voting | ★★★★ | 70 | 54 |
| Listed Equity - Investment Trusts - Voting | ★★★★ | 70 | 60 |
| Listed Equity - Passive Voting | ★★★ | 57 | 57 |
| Fixed Income - SSA (Government Issued) | ★★★★ | 85 | 50 |
| Fixed Income - Corporate | ★★★★ | 84 | 62 |
| Fixed Income - Securitized | ★★★★ | 86 | 55 |
Source: UNPRI. Signatories report on their responsible investment activities by responding to asset-specific modules in the Reporting Framework. Each module houses a variety of indicators that address specific topics of responsible investment. Signatories’ answers are then assessed and results are compiled into an Assessment Report. Please see the end of this presentation for important disclosures.
Please feel free to get in touch with us with any questions about the PRI disclosure process or about our 2021 assessment. 
The views expressed are those of the author and Brown Advisory as of the date referenced and are subject to change at any time based on market or other conditions. These views are not intended to be and should not be relied upon as investment advice and are not intended to be a forecast of future events or a guarantee of future results. Past performance is not a guarantee of future performance and you may not get back the amount invested.
The information provided in this material is not intended to be and should not be considered to be a recommendation or suggestion to engage in or refrain from a particular course of action or to make or hold a particular investment or pursue a particular investment strategy, including whether or not to buy, sell, or hold any of the securities mentioned. It should not be assumed that investments in such securities have been or will be profitable. To the extent specific securities are mentioned, they have been selected by the author on an objective basis to illustrate views expressed in the commentary and do not represent all of the securities purchased, sold or recommended for advisory clients. The information contained herein has been prepared from sources believed reliable but is not guaranteed by us as to its timeliness or accuracy, and is not a complete summary or statement of all available data. This piece is intended solely for our clients and prospective clients, is for informational purposes only, and is not individually tailored for or directed to any particular client or prospective client.
Certain strategies intend to invest in companies with measurable ESG outcomes, as determined by Brown Advisory, and seek to screen out particular companies and industries. Brown Advisory relies on third parties to provide data and screening tools. There is no assurance that this information will be accurate or complete or that it will properly exclude all applicable securities. Investments selected using these tools may perform differently than as forecasted due to the factors incorporated into the screening process, changes from historical trends, and issues in the construction and implementation of the screens (including, but not limited to, software issues and other technological issues). There is no guarantee that Brown Advisory’s use of these tools will result in effective investment decisions.