Nothing is more valuable for eliminating a company from consideration than your feelings about the company and/or it operations or products. You may choose to not own a company if it interferes with your personal, religious, or moral goals. Some people will have problems with companies such as:

  • Alcohol manufacturers and distributors.
  • Military and munitions manufacturers.
  • Tobacco manufacturers and distributors.
  • Companies that may have operations with low employment standards.
  • Companies that support or do not support unionization.

Your personal feelings about a company should never be the primary reason to buy a stock. Just because you like a product or a service doesn’t mean you should invest your life’s savings in the company. Following those impulses can frequently destroy your portfolio.

It is reasonable, however, not to buy the stock of a company to which you have philosophical objections. Don’t make money from an operation that you do not think follows your personal convictions.