Microsoft Corporation (MSFT), Intel Corporation (INTC) & Five Leading Companies in Philanthropy

FedEx Corporation (NYSE:FDX) focuses its giving on three areas that tie in well with the company: emergency and disaster relief, child pedestrian safety, and environmental sustainability. For example, it donated two air supply flights so that UNICEF could respond to famine in Somalia with food. Collaborating with various charities, it has delivered many tons of aid to poverty- or disaster-stricken regions. Its environmental efforts include growing its fleet of hybrid or electric vehicles by 18% in fiscal 2012, saving about 345,000 gallons of fuel.

Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC), through its Intel Foundation, has contributed significantly to education, empowering girls and women, and more. In 2011, 50% of its employees volunteered more than a million hours in their communities. That same year, employees and retirees donated $16 million to local nonprofits, with the foundation adding more than $10 billion to that. In 2010, Intel announced a 10-year, $200 million commitment to support math and science education.

It’s smart to look beyond a company’s philanthropy when evaluating it, but a generous company is likely promoting goodwill among its employees and customers, which could serve shareholders well. All of the above companies are impressive when it comes to philanthropy, as are many others.

Earning well while doing good
Companies doing good, in their communities and beyond, can boost your portfolio‘s performance. And various other studies have suggested that socially responsible investments are at least competitive with the overall market, if not outperforming it on occasion. That’s a solid motivation for even the most coolly rational investors to take social responsibility to heart.

If you’re in the market for solid socially responsible candidates for your portfolio, check out the real-money portfolio run by my colleague Alyce Lomax. Out of all the Fool portfolios in the group, hers was recently in first place.

The article 5 Leading Companies in Philanthropy originally appeared on Fool.com.

Longtime Fool contributor Selena Maranjian, whom you can follow on Twitter, owns shares of Microsoft and Intel. The Motley Fool recommends FedEx and Intel. The Motley Fool owns shares of Intel and Microsoft.

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