Does Gender Diversity in the Boardroom Mean Better Returns?

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By Trey Thoelcke Published
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A new report by the Credit Suisse Research Institute indicates that companies with women on their boards perform better in challenging markets than those with all-male boards. The results of the six-year study suggest that boards with a mix of genders may make fewer risky investment moves and see increased return on equity.

The research includes data from 2,360 companies. Those with a market capitalization of more than $10 billion and with women on their boards outperformed comparable businesses with all-male boards by 26% worldwide. The correlation between stock performance and the presence of women on the board became more clear after the financial crisis that started in 2008.

“Stocks of companies with women on boards tend to be a little more risk averse and have on average a little less debt, which seems to be one of the key reasons why they’ve outperformed so strongly in this particular period,” Mary Curtis, an author of the report, told Bloomberg. “Companies with women on boards really outperformed when the downturn came through in 2008.”

Net income growth for companies with women directors has averaged 14% over the past six years, compared with 10% for those with all-male boards.

Some 36% of companies in the United States have no women on their boards of directors, according to a report by GMI Ratings on gender diversity. According to that report: “Multiple academic studies have concluded that diverse corporate boards exercise more diligent oversight.”

Photo of Trey Thoelcke
About the Author Trey Thoelcke →

Trey has been an editor and author at 24/7 Wall St. for more than a decade, where he has published thousands of articles analyzing corporate earnings, dividend stocks, short interest, insider buying, private equity, and market trends. His comprehensive coverage spans the full spectrum of financial markets, from blue-chip stalwarts to emerging growth companies.

Beyond 24/7 Wall St., Trey has created and edited financial content for Benzinga and AOL's BloggingStocks, contributing additional hundreds of articles to the investment community. He previously oversaw the 24/7 Climate Insights site, managing editorial operations and content strategy, and currently oversees and creates content for My Investing News.

Trey's editorial expertise extends across multiple publishing environments. He served as production editor at Dearborn Financial Publishing and development editor at Kaplan, where he helped shape financial education materials. Earlier in his career, he worked as a writer-producer at SVE. His freelance editing portfolio includes work for prestigious clients such as Sage Publications, Rand McNally, the Institute for Supply Management, the American Library Association, Eggplant Literary Productions, and Spiegel.

Outside of financial journalism, Trey writes fiction and has been an active member of the writing community for years, overseeing a long-running critique group and moderating workshop sessions at regional conventions. He lives with his family in an old house in the Midwest.

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