IR Magazine US Awards – 2023

As we have done in previous years, this week’s blog will showcase the highlights of the 27^th Annual IR Magazine Awards held on March 30^th, 2023, in New York City.

The IR Magazine US Awards recognize exceptional IR practices of public companies and managers in the US through two categories: Research, where investors and analysts vote on the best IR service; and Nomination, where companies across industries submit written entries highlighting their IR achievements from the past year. The awards are further classified by market cap, sector, and category.

The process of choosing the winners consists of three phases:

Phase 1: Once the entry deadline has passed, an IR Magazine editorial team reviews all submissions and produces a shortlist of the best companies and individuals.

Phase 2: The shortlist is shared with an independent judging panel made up of industry experts and professionals. The judges review each candidate and select their top two picks per category.

Phase 3: The judging panel discusses, debates, and selects the list of winners from the candidates who advanced to the final stage.

Having said that, we will now disclose the winners and nominees for each category (winners for each category are highlighted in blue).

Awards by Research

a. Best overall investor relations:

Large cap – Danaher, Equinix, Hilton Worldwide Holdings, Union Pacific Railroad, United Parcel Service, and Waste Connections.

Mid-cap – Brunswick Corporation, Camden Property Trust, Coty, First Horizon Bank, JB Hunt Transport Services, and Wyndham Hotels & resorts.

Small cap – Anterix, DZS, Stride, Triumph Financial, Winnebago Industries, and Zeta Global.

b. Best in sector:

Communications – AT&T, Comcast Corporation, DigitalBridge Group, T-Mobile US, Uber Technologies, and Verizon Communications.

Consumer discretionary – Hilton Worldwide Holdings, Marriott International, Starbucks Corporation, The Home Depot, Tractor Supply Company, and Wyndham Hotels & Resorts.

Consumer staples – Bunge, Coty, General Mills, Mondelez International, The Coca-Cola Company, and The Estée Lauder Companies.

Energy – Cheniere Energy, ConocoPhillips, Devon Energy Corporation, Diamondback Energy, EOG Resources, ExxonMobil, and Hess Corporation.

Financials – Aon, Bank of America, BNY Mellon, CME Group, First Horizon Bank, and The Hartford Financial Services Group.

Healthcare – Boston Scientific, Danaher, Elevance Health, Eli Lilly and Company, Medtronic, and Thermo Fisher Scientific.

Industrials – Deere & Co, Honeywell International, JB Hunt Transport Services, Union Pacific Railroad, United Parcel Services, and Waste Connections.

Materials – Corteva, Ecolab, Element Solutions, Newmont Corporation, The Sherwin-Williams Company, and Univar Solutions.

Real estate – American Tower Corporation, Camden property Trust, Digital Realty Trust, Equinix, and SBA Communications Corporation.

Technology – Apple, Microsoft, Paypal, S&P Global, Texas Instruments, and Visa.

Utilities – Alliant Energy Corp, Dominion Energy, Eversource Energy, NextEra Energy, and Xcel Energy.

Awards by Nomination

a. Best ESG Reporting:

Large cap – FIS Global, Hilton Worldwide Holdings, Marsh McLennan, Moody’s Corporation, Nasdaq, and T-Mobile US.

Small to mid-cap – Blackbaud, California Resources Corporation, Diversified Energy Company, Lear Corporation, PotlatchDeltic Corporation, and Zurn Elkway Water Solutions.

b. Best investor event:

Large cap – Caterpillar, NVIDIA Corporation, Royal Caribbean Group, SLB, Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile (SQM), and Starbucks Corporation.

Small to mid-cap – Adeia, Axalta Coating Systems, Focus Financial Partners, Hasbro, Hyliion Holdings Corp, and ITT.

c. Best crisis management – Coinbase, General Electric, Kohl’s Corporation, and Marsh McLennan.

d. Best IR during corporate transaction – California Resources Corporation, Constellation Energy Corporation, Duolingo, Philip Morris International, Prologis, and Webster Bank.

e. Best IR website – Caterpillar, Cognex Corporation, Focus Financial Partners, Ford Motor Company, Medtronic, and T-Mobile US.

f. Best Retail IR strategy – General Electric, Gogoro, Matador Resources Company, RCI Hospitality Holdings, Safehold, and Sempra.

g. Best use of technology & social media for IR – American Airlines Group, Axon Enterprise, General Electric, Jushi Holdings, RCI Hospitality Holdings, and ZoomInfo Technologies.

h. Best innovation in shareholder communications – Duolingo, H&R Block, Hyliion Holdings Corp, Jushi Holdings, Restaurant Brands International, and Starbucks Corporation.

After introducing all the winners and nominees for each award category, we will highlight the key takeaways companies could use to enhance their IR practices and differentiate themselves from their competitors.

The “Best Overall Investor Relations” category recognizes companies like Hilton Worldwide Holdings and First Horizon Bank, for their highly intuitive and innovative website designs, which provide accessible financial data, avoid information overload, and showcase visual examples of a company’s products and services.

The “Best in Sector” category acknowledges companies like Verizon Communications, Mondelez International, Microsoft, and Safehold, for their strong IR practices, which prioritize transparency, the reporting of timely and relevant information, and the experienced team of advisors to strengthen corporate governance.

In the “Best ESG Reporting” category, Hilton Worldwide Holdings and Blackbaud are recognized for their sustainability strategies, which emphasize concise and detailed sustainability reports and inclusive and socially responsible sustainability strategies.

The winners of categories like “Best innovation in shareholder communications” (Duolingo), “Best use of technology & social media for IR” (Jushi Holdings) and “Best IR website” (Medtronic) have leveraged technology to enhance their IR practices.

Finally, the winners of “Best Investor Event” (Starbucks Corporation) “Best IR during corporate transaction” (Philip Morris International) and “Best crisis management” (Coinbase) have implemented effective communication strategies towards shareholders.

In summary, the nominees and winners highlighted above demonstrate excellent IR and corporate governance practices, which have helped them stand out from their competitors. If your company is interested in improving its IR strategy, please feel free to contact us at Miranda IR for assistance.