Women are significantly underrepresented when it comes to senior leadership positions in many big firms. In an effort to raise awareness for women-led companies in the stock market, DailyFX has indexed the best performing companies in the FTSE 100 that have a woman at the helm.
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Which are the best performing women-led companies in the FTSE 100?
Out of the hundred companies that make up the FTSE 100, only four are led by women.
DailyFX has scored the four companies out of 10 against a number of metrics, including revenue performance, market cap, number of employees, stock price, stock market rank, and employee satisfaction.
1. GlaxoSmithKline
Pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), which is led by Emma Walmsley, leads the index with a score of 8 out of 10. Among the biggest contributors to this high score are high employee satisfaction rating of 3.8 and a relatively high rank within the FTSE 100 of 9.
2. Severn Trent
In second place is water company Severn Trent, which is led by Liv Garfield, who took up the reins in 2014. The company has a score of 5 out of 10. It has one of the highest employee satisfaction scores (4.1) of any company on this list. The company also scores well in regards to dividends (4.11%) and stock market price (£2,307 per share).
3. Whitbread
Multinational hotel and restaurant company Whitbread comes in third place. The company’s CEO is Alison Brittain, who became CEO in 2016 after previously having worked at Lloyds Banking Group. Whitbread is the parent company of Premier Inn, Whitbread restaurants and Costa Coffee.
The company has an overall score of 4 out of 10. The employee satisfaction rate at the company is 3.8 and its rank within the FTSE 100 is 69.
Whitbread has the highest price per share of all the 4 female-led companies on the FTSE 100 at £3,490.
4. ITV
Closing off the index is broadcaster ITV. The company’s CEO is Carolyn McCall, who became its first ever female chief executive in 2018. The company has an overall score of 4 out of 10 with a relatively high employee satisfaction rate of 4.1. However, it has a low rank within the FTSE 100 (91). It also has the lowest price per share on this list at £121.8
More information can be found on the DailyFX website.
Can we expect more women-led companies in the FTSE 100?
There is clearly a big gap between the number of organisations in the FTSE 100 with male CEOs vs. those with female CEOs. A lot needs to be done to achieve some semblance of equality.
The good news, however, is that the number of women in FTSE 100 board and senior executive positions has grown significantly in the last few years. For example, the government-backed Hampton-Alexander Review target of at least 33% of all FTSE 100 board-level positions being occupied by women by the end of 2020 has already been achieved.
A greater number of women in board positions in FTSE 100 companies is likely to boost the pipeline of potential CEO candidates in the near future.
Daniela Sabin Hathorn, DailyFX analyst, says: “The companies listed above are a great example of how women are leading the way in their respective fields, and will hopefully serve as an example to future women leaders so we can tip the scales of equality even further.”
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Are women-led FTSE 100 companies better to invest in than men-led companies?
Previous studies have suggested that female-led companies tend to outperform male-led companies on a range of metrics, including profitability and stock price performance, and even employee satisfaction.
That being said, who leads a company is only a small part of the equation when making an investment decision. The choice of companies to invest in should be based on your goals, preferences, and investment strategy. As always, you should do your research before you invest.
Should your research reveal that any of these four-female led companies in the FTSE 100 are a good investment choice, it is best to invest using a stocks and shares ISA. This is essentially a tax wrapper that will shelter your investment gains and income from tax, allowing you to keep more of your earnings and possibly achieve your financial goals faster.
Please note that tax treatment depends on your individual circumstances and may be subject to change in the future. The content in this article is provided for information purposes only. It is not intended to be, neither does it constitute, any form of tax advice. Readers are responsible for carrying out their own due diligence and for obtaining professional advice before making any investment decisions.
