Socially responsible firms repeatedly achieve first-rate financial returns that meet and often beat the market and their peers, proving morals and money may be curiously compatible, after all. For example, Governance Metrics International rated public firms on governance, labor, environmental and litigation policies. Top-ranked firms substantially outperformed the market, while poorly rated firms significantly trailed it. When Morningstar, the revered fund rater, examined socially responsible stock funds over a three-year period, it found that 21 percent had earned its top five-star rating.