A portfolio that purrs

Animal lovers now have their own socially screened stock portfolio to cuddle up with — without the fear of fur balls, ticks or fleas.

The Humane Equity Index Portfolio, rolled out last month by Aperio Group LLC, tracks the Russell 1000 Index. The portfolio seeks to match the performance of the broad equity market while excluding companies whose business practices are considered inhumane by the Best Friends Animal Society, a leader in services supporting the humane treatment of animals. It excludes companies that operate factory farms or raise animals for fur, engage in the animal entertainment industry using inhumane practices, conduct unneeded animal testing of nonpharmaceutical products or use animals to test drugs in inhumane ways.

Based in Kanab, Utah, Best Friends Animal Society runs the nation’s largest sanctuary for abandoned animals. The group uses the humane index in its 401(k) plan for employees, said Patrick Geddes, co-founder of Aperio, a custom index developer, which manages $2.1 billion in socially screened separate accounts. Mr. Geddes formerly served as chief financial officer and director of quantitative research at Morningstar Inc.

“We were caught off guard” by the response from other investors and advisers who expressed an interest in using the new portfolio, Mr. Geddes said. “Animal rights must have hit a nerve or a populist streak.”