CBS News identifies the 10 biggest market losers of 2011. HP and BofA are both targets of (more…)
Tag Archives | USPX
Reflections On 2011
James McRitchie, 12/26/2011 ,
The United States Proxy Exchange (USPX) is a experiment premised on the notion that a grass roots movement—by individual shareowners, for individual shareowners and funded entirely by dues of individual shaeowners—can improve corporate governance and address financial abuse. It is too early to say for sure, but based on what we achieved in 2011, the […]
Median CEO Compensation Up 28% in 2010 Says GMI
James McRitchie, 12/22/2011 ,
GMI released their CEO Pay Survey 2011, one of the largest surveys of CEO compensation in North America, based on analysis of the Russell 3000 and S&P 500 companies. Key findings include: Total Realized Compensation in the S&P 500 rose by about 36 percent. Total Realized Compensation in the Russell 1000 rose by more (more…)
15th Proxy Access Proposal of Season Filed at Nabors
James McRitchie, 12/14/2011 ,
Bermuda-based energy-drilling contractor Nabors Industries Ltd., already being sued by shareowners over executive pay issues now faces a proxy access proposal filed by CalSTRS and nine public pension funds from Connecticut, Illinois, New York and North Carolina. The company’s stock has lost about a quarter of its value this year. According to New York City Comptroller John C. Liu, who […]
Face Off: "Will of the Voters" – Who Decides?
James McRitchie, 12/08/2011 ,
I’m glad to see Lawrence Hamermesh and I are moving past the “bullet” stage in our discussions on proxy access towards a real dialogue. Although he is no longer calling on boards to ignore the voting results of precatory (more…)
Proxy Access Proposed at Six More Companies
James McRitchie, 12/06/2011 ,
Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM), manager of the $550 billion Norwegian Government Pension Fund Global, has filed shareholder proposals for binding bylaw proxy access proposals at six US companies (Wells Fargo, Charles Schwab, Western Union, Staples, Pioneer Natural Resources and CME Groupas) part of its efforts to strengthen shareholder rights. According to (more…)
Can't We All Just Get Along?
James McRitchie, 11/27/2011 ,
The Media is No Friend of Corporate Directors, writes T.K. Kerstetter. That’s right, and it is time boards took action to avoid giving shareowners good reason to vote against directors or the pay packages they authorize. Kerstetter is upset because after talking to the press about the appointment of former Governor and one-time Nashville mayor Phil […]
Why Precatory Proxy Access Proposals?
James McRitchie, 11/21/2011 ,
The respected scholar, Lawrence Hamermesh, writes about the model proxy access proposal published by United States Proxy Exchange (USPX) and asks why an organization whose motto (”Populus Constituit,” the people decide) is so reluctant to file mandatory bylaw proposals, instead of precatory proposals. (Precatory proxy access proposals, The Institute of Delaware corporate and Business Law, 11/15/2011) Hamermesh speculates USPX […]
ISS Updates Proxy Voting Guidelines
James McRitchie, 11/17/2011 ,
Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. (ISS), the largest proxy advisory, released 2012 updates to its U.S., Canadian, European, and international benchmark proxy voting guidelines. The global updates are the result of an extensive consultation process that included outreach to and input from institutional investors and corporate issuers worldwide. ISS analysts will begin applying the updated policies to […]
Two Strikes and You're in Australia
James McRitchie, 11/15/2011 ,
In case you missed it at theCorporateCounsel.net (Australia’s New “Two Strikes” Say-on-Pay Law, 11/3/2011): Under the new amendment to the Australian (more…)
The Folly of a $-Centric Universe
James McRitchie, 11/14/2011 ,
Michael Levin argues cites Milton Friedman and Michael Jensen to support an argument that wealth maximization provides investors and executives with apparently the only clear means of setting priorities they really need. McDonalds Corporation should treat cattle and chickens humanely if doing so will sell more sandwiches profitably, not (more…)
Model Proxy Access Proposal
James McRitchie, 11/10/2011 ,
Today, the United States Proxy Exchange (USPX) released a Model Proxy Access Proposal that can be presented to corporations for a shareowner vote under SEC Rule 14a-8 to ensure that long-term shareowners have (more…)
Last Day to Influence ISS on 2012 Proxy Voting Policies
James McRitchie, 11/07/2011 ,
Today, November 7th, is the last day to send comments to Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. (ISS) on their 2012 proxy voting (more…)
USPX Website Launch: From Occupying to Transforming Wall Street
James McRitchie, 11/01/2011 ,
Members of the United States Proxy Exchange (USPX) are celebrating the launch of our new website today. The site is key to our plan to decentralize the organization, a strategy we formulated at a June 11 meeting of long-term members. The new site will provide members with a host of social networking tools aimed at the […]
Proxy Access for the 99% – Conference Call Halloween Night
James McRitchie, 10/31/2011 ,
While little goblins and rock stars roam the streets seeking handouts, USPX members will engage in a conference call on a model proxy access proposal. It has evolved substantially since the initial draft was announced in a way that I think will appeal to both large institutional investors, like public pension funds, as well as […]
Proxy Access for the 99% – Open for USPX Member Comment
James McRitchie, 10/30/2011 ,
The time has come for shareowners to be allowed to include their own nominees for corporate boards in the proxy materials their corporations send out every year—so-called “ballot” or “proxy access.” The current system—that only allows shareowners to vote for candidates nominated by the current board—is absurd. The SEC has finally reaffirmed shareowners’ right to […]
Proxy Access: Will the 99% Reach Consensus?
James McRitchie, 10/27/2011 ,
Tuesday’s post, Proxy Access for the 99%, is drawing controversy among USPX members, with about 30 comments in the first couple of days. Will we reach consensus or will shareowners simply end up taking elements of the model proposal for their own use? So far, and we are only two days in, the $2,000 threshold […]
Pay Ratios and Ratcheting
James McRitchie, 10/13/2011 ,
Daniel F. Pedrotty, AFL-CIO, posted Why CEO-to-Worker Pay Ratios Matter to Investors to the Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance and Financial Regulations on Thursday August 11. I’ve been meaning to mention it since then, mostly so that I have it file on my blog for future reference. I’ve got almost 16 years of […]
PG: How I Voted
James McRitchie, 10/07/2011 ,
Proctor & Gamble (PG) is one of the stocks in my portfolio. Their annual meeting is coming up on October 11. I voted yesterday using the MoxyVote.com platform. Today is the last day to use it. Tomorrow, you’ll have to use ProxyVote.com. MoxyVote.com had recommendations from 13 “good causes,” which included several consolidations. ProxyDemocracy.org had recommendations from 5 participating funds families. When it […]
Video Friday: Occupy Wall Street
James McRitchie, 10/07/2011 ,
Eliot Spitzer calls on Obama to support Occupy Wall Street. Noting that the movement is amassing support day by day, Spitzer hopes this will encourage President Obama – calling him “flat” on Wall Street and the economy – to speak with “a new and progressive voice.” Michael Moore states, “We oppose the way our economy […]
Video Friday: Exec Pay, Balancing Expectations or Class Warfare?
James McRitchie, 09/30/2011 ,
Scott Cutler, EVP, NYSE Euronext, interviewed Linda Lamel, Compensation Chair, Universal American Financial Corp. for This Week in the Boardroom (video) 9/29/2011. See also the AFL-CIO’s PayWatch and the Young Turks video. In 2010 the average worker saw a 2.6% increase in salary but a 3.6% increase in the Consumer Price Index. Meanwhile median CEO pay increased 27%. The […]
Corporate Spring
James McRitchie, 09/16/2011 ,
Ordinary people using Facebook and Twitter overturned dictators in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya. David Kirkpatrick of Techonomy Media, which promotes the integration of technology with business and social progress, writes “this social might is now moving toward your company… you’d better get out of their way—or learn to embrace them.” Gary Hamel, one of business’ […]
Medtronic: How I Voted
James McRitchie, 08/22/2011 ,
Medtronic (MDT) is one of the stocks in my portfolio. Their annual meeting is coming up on August 25. I voted yesterday using the MoxyVote.com platform. However, it is too late to do that today, so you’ll have to use ProxyVote.com. MoxyVote.com had recommendations from seven “good causes,” which included two consolidations. ProxyDemocracy.org had only two participating funds (more…)
The Potentially Binding Nature of Say on Pay
James McRitchie, 08/18/2011 ,
Say-on-pay, somewhat hollow on its own, could be used as a gatekeeper of sorts for corporate waste claims, argues Steven C. Caywood in Wasting the Corporate Waste Doctrine: How the Doctrine Can Provide a Viable Solution in Controlling Excessive Executive Compensation, 12/2010. A revitalized corporate waste doctrine would allow shareowners to have some meaningful power […]
Say-on-Pay Voting Standards Released
James McRitchie, 08/04/2011 ,
Yesterday, the United States Proxy Exchange (USPX) released standards for shareowners to use in making say-on-pay voting decisions. “Say-on-pay” rules mandated by Dodd-Frank allow shareowners to express an opinion on executive compensation at annual meetings. But to make informed voting decisions, shareowners must first assess the compensation packages boards propose. That is not easy, since […]
Median CEO Pay Up Again: My Apologies
James McRitchie, 07/13/2011 ,
Do I need to apologize? I’ve been using USPX guidelines to vote down pay packages at large companies over the $9 million 2010 median reported by Equilar earlier this year. Now, they’ve revised their pay figures. Final data show median pay for top executives at 200 big companies last year was $10.8 million, up 23% […]
ISS Vote Results and Executive Pay
James McRitchie, 06/30/2011 ,
ISS released a summary of the vote results for shareholder proposals on leading governance, environmental and social topics. Investors overwhelmingly endorsed company pay programs, 91.2% support on average (based on “for” and “against” votes). Shareholders voted down management “say on pay” proposals at 36 companies, or just 1.7 percent of the almost 2,200 companies in the […]
Power Struggles Over Pay
James McRitchie, 06/27/2011 ,
Gary Larkin’s recent post, 2011 CEO Succession Report: Dismissals Up, Outside Hires on the Rise, informs Conference Board readers that Institutional Shareholder Services has launched an executive compensation database service for its client subscribers. Say on Pay rules were the driving force behind the new service. The database includes historical CEO and NEO (named executive […]
Comments on SOP Advice: Rolling In
James McRitchie, 06/08/2011 ,
Sometimes the comments are as informative as the original post. The United States Proxy Exchange asked for comments on their/our draft say-on-pay voting guidelines aimed at retail investors. So far, that plea for help has attracted comments from growing list leading thinkers in the investment community. Thanks to each of you for taking the time […]
WSJ Reports Inaccurately on SLAPP Suits
James McRitchie, 06/06/2011 ,
Jessica Holzer, writing for The Wall Street Journal informs readers this morning, Firms Try New Tack Against Gadflies: Corporations Look to Block Shareholder Activists’ Proposals by Challenging the Size of Their Stakes – WSJ.com. Companies have long viewed shareholder activist John Chevedden as a pain. The retired aerospace worker and his network of like-minded activists […]
Stock-based Comp Dis-aligns Shareowners & Mgt
James McRitchie, 06/04/2011 ,
Writing in the Harvard Business Review, Roger Martin from U. of Toronto explains that CEOs are rewarded for share price volatility not performance. (The Nasty Truth about CEO Pay, 6/3/2011) The financial crisis worked out great for them. Martin explains with great tables comparing the returns for a CEO, whose company performed with the averages, […]
Amazon: How I Voted
James McRitchie, 06/03/2011 ,
Amazon (AMZN) is one of the stocks in my portfolio. Their annual meeting is coming up June 7 and today is the last day to vote using the MoxyVote.com platform. MoxyVote.com had eight “good causes,” including three (more…)
Davita (DVA): How I Voted
James McRitchie, 06/02/2011 ,
Davita (DVA) is one of the stocks in my portfolio. Their annual meeting is coming up June 6. ProxyDemocracy.org had four funds voting. MoxyVote.com had two funds and two consolidations. Checking the Summary Compensation Table, it appears CEO/Chair Kent J. Thiry was paid more than $14 million. Using the United States Proxy Exchange (USPX) released draft guidelines, I voted against most […]
Cognizant (CTSH): How I Voted
James McRitchie, 05/31/2011 ,
Cognizant Technology Solutions (CTSH) is one of the stocks in my portfolio. Their annual meeting is coming up June 2. ProxyDemocracy.org had four funds voting when I looked yesterday. Checking the Summary Compensation Table, it appears CEO/Chairman Francisco D’Souza was paid more than $11 million. Using the United States Proxy Exchange (USPX) released draft guidelines, I voted against most pay packages where […]
Biogen Idec (BIIB): How I Voted
James McRitchie, 05/31/2011 ,
Biogen Idec (BIIB) is one of the stocks in my portfolio. Their annual meeting is coming up June 2. ProxyDemocracy.org had five funds voting. Checking the Summary Compensation Table, it appears former CEO/Chairman James C. Mullen was paid more than $20 million and current CEO George A. Scangos was paid $9.4 million. Using the United States Proxy Exchange […]