| The six companies identified as having the most consistently high corporate governance ratings, according to GovernanceMetrics International, a corporate governance research and ratings firm, share more than high governance standards. The six governance stars— BCE Inc. (BCE), Nexen Inc. (NXY), Colgate-Palmolive Co. (CL), PepsiCo (PEP), Wisconsin Energy Corp. (WEC) and Westpac Bank Corp. (WBK)—also list on the Big Board.
The six companies consistently received GMI’s highest rating of 10 in either five out of six, or six out of seven occasions, depending on when the companies were first rated by GMI.
The six corporate governance standouts “represent companies with high governance standards with little governance risk,” wrote GMI in a press release. Through Feb. 25, the six companies had a composite total shareholder return of 23.75 percent over the last three years.
GMI surveys some 3,200 global companies every six months. It ranks companies on a scale of one to 10 and groups them into three categories: those with above-average, average and below-average governance characteristics. GMI grades companies across six broad categories of analysis: board accountability, financial disclosure and internal controls, executive compensation, shareholder rights, ownership base, and takeover provisions, plus corporate behavior and environmental, health and safety issues.
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