If a loss is incurred, it may be treated as a reasonable cost of advancing the institution's mission, if it is not excessive. Should a question arise, counsel should be consulted. One might argue that the decision to buy the stock in the first place led to the loss. How an institution handles the development and implementation of a mission-based investment policy will determine in large part its success or failure. A key to success is to be found in a rigorous attention to detail in the development of investment guidelines.
General guidelines are simple and brief and are designed to remain in place indefinitely.
The working guidelines may be revised as experience dictates and should be revisited annually. Some articles have criticized the expense ratios on socially screened mutual funds. They have tended to compare screened funds to unscreened, so the expenses will not line up. Also they hold social funds to the same standards as Fidelity and Vanguard funds without allowing for the possibilities of cost-spreading greater size permits. That said, as with any service, buyers of investment management should carefully compare services and prices.