It's a long time coming and can be gone instantly: Which ASX companies have 'credibility'?

Credibility is the quality of being trusted and believed. It is often associated with reliability and integrity.

It is vitally important not only in business but also in personal relationships. It is also one of those important intangibles that take a long time to establish but can disappear in an instant.

One misstep, one poorly executed announcement, one failure of governance, can be all it takes for all the hard work built up over years – or even decades – to be undone.

And this is to say nothing of a full-blown scandal or value-destructive acquisition – they can put a company in the doghouse for years.

So, which ASX companies have banked enough street cred to be ranked in the Top 10 by those in the know? To answer that question, MarketMeter has once again kindly shared its research exclusively with Livewire.

For those unfamiliar, MarketMeter is an interactive market insights platform that measures and benchmarks institutional investor perceptions of Australian listed companies, who find it is a reliable risk management tool to understand their performance in the eyes of institutional investors.

Using a combination of quantitative and qualitative research (in other words, both numbers-based and non-numerical) insights, MarketMeter helps gauge the sentiment of these professional investors.

Which professional investors, you ask?

At last count, the research included responses from around 150 buy and sell-side institutions, many of whom you regularly hear from on the Livewire platform.

We were also lucky enough to be able to put a handful of questions to the company ranked highest in the ASX top 100 for credibility - Macquarie Group (ASX: MQG)

Top 10 companies for credibility

Before we check out the list, here is MarketMeter’s definition of Credibility:

General perception of the investment community as to the reputation and prowess of the organisation as a whole - covering areas from relationships with customers/consumers, relevant government bodies, suppliers, investors, community, public, media etc. Also includes credibility of management, with respect to keeping the market informed and managing investor expectations.

Here is the Top 10 in the ASX 100

Here is the Top 10 in the ASX 101-200

Comment from Macquarie Group

Why do you think Macquarie has been ranked so highly by investors regarding credibility?

Macquarie is committed to ensuring that the market as a whole is relevantly and consistently informed regarding information about Macquarie by providing security-holders and the market with timely, balanced, direct and equal access to information issued by Macquarie, to promote investor confidence in the integrity of Macquarie and in the trading of its securities.

How does Macquarie actively engage with stakeholders to protect its reputation and promote its brand globally?

Macquarie believes that shareholders, regulators, ratings agencies and the investment community should be informed of all major business events and risks that influence Macquarie in a factual, timely and widely available manner. The Head of Investor Relations aided by the Company Secretary, is responsible for Macquarie’s continuous disclosure obligation, overseeing and co-ordinating disclosure of information to ASX, security-holders, analysts and investors and educating directors and staff on Macquarie’s disclosure policies and procedures.

In the recent financial year (ended 31 March 2023), Investor Relations maintained close engagement with the investment community, conducting over 600 meetings. This included attendance at a number of investor conferences and two domestic and international roadshows. Macquarie also delivered an inaugural US investor tour offering deep dive sessions on MAM, MacCap and CGM.

Does Macquarie have a set of internal guidelines around building credibility – and can you share them with us?

At Macquarie, our purpose and principles guide our actions. Macquarie’s purpose ‘Empowering people to innovate and invest for a better future’ represents why we exist and what we do. We believe that by empowering people – our colleagues, clients, communities, shareholders and partners – we will achieve our shared potential. Macquarie’s high standards for conduct are underpinned by What We Stand For, and our long-held principles of Opportunity, Accountability and Integrity.

“With Opportunity, we seek to identify opportunity and realise it for our clients, communities, partners, shareholders and our people. We start with real knowledge and skill. We encourage innovation, ingenuity and entrepreneurial spirit balanced with operational discipline. We support our people to learn, achieve and succeed. Our success is built on this. We value the opportunity to be part of the Macquarie team, actively seeking out and respecting different ways of thinking and the contribution of others.

With opportunity, comes Accountability. We are accountable for all our actions, to our stakeholders and each other. We do not compromise our standards. We take responsibility for our actions and everything we say and do is on the record. We analyse and manage risk, and we make decisions we are proud of and that stand the test of time.

With Integrity, we act honestly and fairly. We honour our promises. We earn the trust of our stakeholders through the quality of our work and our high ethical standards. We have the courage to speak up when we make a mistake or see something that doesn’t seem right.”

This forms part of Macquarie’s Code of Conduct which is published on the website.

What will Macquarie be doing in 2024 and beyond to stay at the top of the credibility rankings?

Macquarie is committed to ensuring that the market as a whole is relevantly and consistently informed regarding information about Macquarie. Clear dialogue with our stakeholders, including shareholders and analysts, is important to building strong relationships, maintaining trust and enhancing business performance.

In 2024, Macquarie will hold its annual Operational Briefing in February and continue its regular communications programme throughout the year.