Date of Award
5-2013
Document Type
Honors Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts
Department
Accounting
Advisor/Committee Chair
Raymond K. Van Ness
Abstract
This research thesis is an investigation into whether companies implementing a “going green” strategy will compromise their financial performance. The primary focus was on two large financial institutions, one clearly committed to going green and the other less interested in doing so: Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase. The assessment centered on specific financial measurement points for the fiscal years of 2010 and 2011. Concern for health and wellbeing of the earth is growing exponentially, however, in order to sustain the movement it is imperative that companies join the green initiatives. Nevertheless, companies must achieve specific thresholds of financial performance and the question is whether “green initiatives” compromise these critical points of performance. If they do, corporate management may lose shareholder support and be forced to change strategies. This study determined that Bank of America, the “Going Green” firm did not perform as well as JP Morgan Chase in multiple measurement categories. However, it did maintain a stronger relationship between debt and assets, suggesting the potential for future improved performance. This thesis also reveals a comprehensive discussion of findings, details study limitations, and offers suggestions for future research.
Recommended Citation
Goldstein, Heather, "Does Going Green Mean Losing Green? Bank of America vs JPMorgan Chase" (2013). Accounting. 6.
https://scholarsarchive.library.albany.edu/honorscollege_accounting/6