Roche (SIX: RO, ROG; OTCQX: RHHBY) has been named Supersector Leader in Healthcare in the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes (DJSI) for the second year running. This top ranking among the world's leading sustainability-driven healthcare companies is a reflection of Roche's commitment to its employees, communities and the environment, and positions Roche as a global leader in the management of sustainable business practices.
Annual selection into the DJSI World and DJSI STOXX follows a thorough analysis of corporate economic, environmental and social performance by SAM, an investment group focused exclusively on sustainability investment strategies. Factors such as corporate governance, risk management, human resource practices, stakeholder engagement and the quality of environmental reporting are assessed, in addition to sector-specific elements, such as strategies on access to medicines and supply chain standards. Roche has been included in the DJSI World and STOXX since 2004, and first achieved the title of 'Supersector Leader' in Healthcare in 2009.
"We are extremely pleased to be recognised again as the Supersector Leader in Healthcare for the second year in a row," commented Severin Schwan, CEO of Roche. "Sustainability is at the core of our business practices and this positioning reflects our commitment to running our business in a way that is ethical, responsible and creates long-term value for stakeholders. Our ongoing sector leadership position will also provide an incentive to further develop our sustainability strategy while continuing to deliver innovative treatments for patients with unmet medical needs."
Roche's activities in the area of sustainability include reduction of energy consumption and improving energy efficiency thereby decreasing the carbon footprint, involvement in local community charitable initiatives, remuneration and benefit programmes that reflect the dedication and value of its employees and ultimately the development of new approaches to bring medically valuable and sustainable healthcare products and services to patients around the world. Further details can be found on our corporate responsibility website on www.roche.com.
About the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes (DJSI)
Launched in 1999, the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes are the first global indexes tracking the financial performance of the leading sustainability-driven companies worldwide. Based on the cooperation of Dow Jones Indexes, STOXX Limited and SAM they provide asset managers with reliable and objective benchmarks to manage sustainability portfolios.
Currently more than 70 DJSI licenses are held by asset managers in 16 countries to manage a variety of financial products including active and passive funds, certificates and segregated accounts. In total, these licensees presently manage over 8 billion USD based on the DJSI.
The DJSI World groups the top 10% leading performers in terms of sustainable development, among 2,500 companies in 22 countries, while the DJSI STOXX covers the top 20% companies listed on the DJ STOXX 600. The sector leader is the top company in each of the 19 Supersectors analysed, with the Healthcare Supersector leader being chosen from over 70 companies specialising in pharmaceuticals, medical products, healthcare providers and biotechnology.
About Sustainable Asset Management (SAM)
SAM is an investment group focused exclusively on Sustainability Investing. The firm's offering comprises asset management, indexes and private equity. Its asset management capabilities include a range of single-theme, multi-theme and core sustainability investment strategies catering to institutional asset owners and financial intermediaries in Europe, the United States, Asia-Pacific and the Middle East. Through its index activities, SAM has partnered with Dow Jones Indexes and STOXX Limited for the publication and licensing of the globally recognized Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes (DJSI) as well as customized sustainability benchmarks. Furthermore, SAM is the center of expertise for clean tech private equity within Robeco. Based on its Corporate Sustainability Assessment, SAM has compiled one of the world's largest sustainability databases and analyzes over 2,000 listed companies annually. SAM's proprietary research and sustainability data are fully integrated into its offering. SAM belongs to Robeco, which was established in 1929 and offers a broad range of investment products and services worldwide. Robeco is a subsidiary of the AAA-rated Rabobank Group. SAM was founded in 1995, is headquartered in Zurich and employs over 100 professionals. As of June 30, 2010, SAM's total assets amount to USD 13.7 billion.
About Roche
Headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, Roche is a leader in research-focused healthcare with combined strengths in pharmaceuticals and diagnostics. Roche is the world's largest biotech company with truly differentiated medicines in oncology, virology, inflammation, metabolism and CNS. Roche is also the world leader in in-vitro diagnostics, tissue-based cancer diagnostics and a pioneer in diabetes management. Roche's personalised healthcare strategy aims at providing medicines and diagnostic tools that enable tangible improvements in the health, quality of life and survival of patients. In 2009, Roche had over 80'000 employees worldwide and invested almost 10 billion Swiss francs in R&D. The Group posted sales of 49.1 billion Swiss francs. Genentech, United States, is a wholly owned member of the Roche Group. Roche has a majority stake in Chugai Pharmaceutical, Japan. For more information: www.roche.com.