Virtual Galt Corporation Announces Creation of LGBT Stock Index

Saco, ME, December 21, 2008 --(PR.com)-- Today, Virtual Galt Corporation announced the creation of the Virtual Galt Pride IndexSM, a passive stock index of companies with strongly supportive LGBT human resource policies.

The index is comprised of stock of 97 companies. All the companies are also on the S&P 500 Index. The 97 companies have all received perfect 100 scores from a leading LGBT rights advocacy organization on their policies toward LGBT employees.

Because of overweighting in some segments relative to the market among the 97 companies, top-scoring consumer discretionary and financial firms are included in the index at a 50 percent weighting, and the 100-rated information technology firms are included at a 75 percent weighting.

Backtested from January 1, 2000, the index performed as follows. For comparison, the S&P 500 with dividends reinvested is also shown:

Virtual Galt Pride Index S&P 500
2000 11.0% -8.2%
2001 -2.7% -12.0%
2002 -11.7% -22.2%
2003 30.0% 28.5%
2004 20.2% 10.7%
2005 8.9% 4.8%
2006 18.9% 15.6%
2007 7.3% 5.4%
2008YTD -42.8% -39.5%

Since 1/1/2000 total 18.6% -30.9%

James Oaksun, president of Virtual Galt, commented, “I have long had an intuitive sense that it was possible to do well by doing good. Now, with the Virtual Galt Pride IndexSM, I have proved it. I know many LGBT investors who want to be supportive of the companies out there that have taken a stand in support of us. This new index is a way for the LGBT community, as well as others, to see how much better their money could do when backing the right kinds of companies.”

Oaksun is contemplating creating a mutual fund based on the Virtual Galt Pride IndexSM someday, but there are no immediate plans to launch one. For now, he says, he will publish and make the index results available to individuals and organizations interested in socially conscious investing.

Virtual Galt Corporation is a Saco, Maine-based financial consultancy. Its founder, James Oaksun, refers to himself as a “gay libertarian financial therapist.” The mission of Virtual Galt is to “Help You Find Freedom.”

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