Author: Carter LeCraw, CFP
Disclaimer: American Values does not hold SYY, TSN or ANDE in its Covestor American Heroes Model.
“A hero is a man who does what he can”
-Romain Rolland
August 30, 2010: When Gustus Bozarth was captured on video he captured the hearts of Americans. Gustus is the homeless man who “rescued” a flag blown down by a storm, carefully folded it military style, then gently placed it on the windshield of a nearby parked car. Gustus was not aware that his kind act of patriotism was picked up by a surveillance camera and then put on YouTube. When I viewed it I started to tear up. The enormous positive response by thousands of Americans, which even included offers to help Gustav financially, says something important about Americans … deep within, we still long for heroes.
What little Gustus had he gave and therefore became, in the eyes of many, an American hero, … as an individual. But what about groups? Could people acting collectively in noble fashion, be considered a hero? I think, … “yes”.
Obviously, there are many charitable and religious organizations doing heroic work in our society, but there are ALSO such groups in the challenging arena of the marketplace. We call them American Hero Companies and define them as those companies that “best reflect the values of Integrity, Humility, Diligence and Caring”.
To gain “Hero” status a corporate candidate must survive a rigorous research process including, but not limited to, a detailed analysis of over 280 questions. They are then rated on a 500 point scoring system and must obtain a minimum score of 380. After sifting through thousands of candidates we have identified 120 public companies that have obtained and maintained “American Hero Company” status.
American Hero Companies warrant our support; not so much for them, but for America. As a country we need inspiration and leadership NOW. Hero Companies offer critical leadership because they, while under enormous marketplace pressure, are succeeding at the important task of creating life-enhancing products and services for our nation and the world. There is tremendous pressure to compromise, but these companies strive to hold the line on important principles and values while, at the same time, generating a competitive return for their shareholders.
American Hero Companies exhibit “heroic” actions in various ways. Some courageously post, for all the world to see, the values by which they intend to operate. This certainly opens the door to accusations of hypocrisy, but gives them challenging standards for which to strive. One American Hero company I particularly admire is Tyson (TSN) has, as part of their core values, the statement, “We strive to operate with integrity and trust in all we do.” Sysco (SYY) includes this phrase, ” We … believe that the underlying principle for proper corporate governance is a simple one – ‘Do the right thing.’ ” Still another Hero, The Andersons (ANDE) offers this comment, “We also believe that profit or personal gain must never come at the expense of personal integrity or the public welfare.”
Words are nice, but American Hero Companies don’t merely give lip service to their values. One executive gave up options worth seven figures to set a tone at the top for keeping down costs. An employee of a Hero company said she had been thanked more in her two years there than she had been in nine years at a competitor’s company. Several of our Hero apartment companies (REITs) partner with a charitable organization to plant ministry teams in their apartment communities. During the latest economic downturn one Hero manufacturing company, employing thousands of workers, unlike many competitors, refused to layoff ANY employees. These are just a few of the numerous examples of how American Hero Companies are making a difference.
We believe exemplary and noble actions like these usually, and over the long term, benefit employees, customers, communities … and shareholders. But, as investors, we must learn to follow the lead of many of our American Hero Companies and NOT allow financial gain to be the PRIMARY driver of our financial decisions. We are grateful for the good financial performance of many companies in our American Hero Universe, but, whether or not it’s financially rewarding, putting our values first (by selecting stocks of companies that put values first) is simply the “right thing to do”.
You don’t hear a lot about exemplary corporate behavior in the media; much the opposite. That’s one reason we have decided to start giving America a steady flow of news about the exemplary actions in the public marketplace, including positive actions by American Hero Companies. If you would like to sign up for these notifications feel free to contact us with your email address.
America needs heroes; inspiring, selfless individuals like Mr. Bozarth and the dedicated groups of people that make up American Hero Companies. A facebook page for comments and an account for donations have been set up for those who want to support the new American hero, Gustus Bozarth. In the meanwhile, our company will continue to specialize in helping investors support some of our favorite heroes.
