Media Contacts:
Andrea Ranger, Shareholder Advocate, aranger@greencentury.com, 781-349-2813
Pam Podger, Communications Director, ppodger@greencentury.com, 802-299-9495
Boston, July 10, 2023 — CarMax, Inc., the largest used vehicle retailer in the U.S., has committed to strengthening its carbon offsets disclosure so that shareholders can assess whether the company is on track to achieve its greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets. In response, Green Century°, with lead-filer As You Sow, withdrew a shareholder proposal for CarMax’s 2023 annual meeting.
In exchange for the withdrawal, CarMax agreed to several steps. It will publicly disclose any carbon offsets and renewable energy purchased to meet its goal of a 50% reduction by 2025 in emissions generated by its operations. It will also share its criteria for procuring high-quality carbon offsets. Further, CarMax will disclose details of any projects involving purchases of carbon offsets and renewable energy, including the project names, locations, and third-party verification of the projects’ authenticity.
Leslie Samuelrich, President of Green Century Funds, stated, “We applaud CarMax’s commitment to disclosing its carbon offsets and renewable energy purchases and see it as an important step toward greater transparency. Investors need this clarity to understand companies’ climate risk and how they plan to address it. We have little time to waste in order to prevent predicted catastrophic impacts from climate change and to transition to a clean energy economy.”
The Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) has said that on average companies should reduce 90% of their emissions by 2050. Some shareholders believe that companies are relying on carbon offsets to meet their near-term and medium-term greenhouse gas reduction targets. Green Century’s engagement will help clarify the reasons why CarMax is purchasing carbon offsets and whether the company is on track to make SBTi’s recommended 90% emissions cuts by 2050.
Andrea Ranger, shareholder advocate at Green Century, said, “It is critical that companies making net-zero or greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets have a viable pathway for achieving those goals. We believe that carbon offsets should only be used to address hard-to-eliminate emissions and that companies should primarily focus on cutting emissions to achieve their emissions reduction goals.”
An investment strategy that incorporates environmental, social and governance criteria may result in lower or higher returns than an investment strategy that does not include such criteria.
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°Green Century Capital Management, Inc. (Green Century) is the investment advisor to the Green Century Funds (The Funds). The Green Century Funds are one of the first families of fossil fuel-free, environmentally responsible mutual funds. Green Century hosts an award-winning and in-house shareholder advocacy program and is the only mutual fund company in the U.S. wholly owned by environmental and public health nonprofit organizations.
*As of March 31, 2023, CarMax, Inc. comprised 0.00%, 0.06%, and 0.00% of Green Century Balanced Fund, the Green Century Equity Fund, and the Green Century International Index Fund respectively. As of the same date, other securities mentioned were not held in the portfolios of any of the Green Century Funds. References to specific securities, which will change due to ongoing management of the Funds, should not be construed as a recommendation by the Funds, their administrator, or their distributor.
You should carefully consider the Fund’s investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses before investing. To obtain a Prospectus that contains this and other information about the Funds please visit www.greencentury.com, email info@greencentury.com, or call 1-800-934-7336. Please read the Prospectus carefully before investing.
Stocks will fluctuate in response to factors that may affect a single company, industry, sector, country, region or the market as a whole and may perform worse than the market. Foreign securities are subject to additional risks such as currency fluctuations, regional economic and political conditions, differences in accounting methods, and other unique risks compared to investing in securities of U.S. issuers. Bonds are subject to a variety of risks including interest rate, credit, and inflation risk.
This information has been prepared from sources believed reliable. The views expressed are as the date of this writing and are those of the Advisor to the Funds.
The Green Century Funds are distributed by UMB Distribution Services, LLC. 235 W Galena Street, Milwaukee, WI 53212. 7/23