Carnival plc | NYSE & LSE | Meeting Date: 2013/04/17
During the past several months, Carnival has faced many lawsuits stemming from incidents involving the Company’s cruises ships, Costa Concordia and Triumph. In early 2012, the grounding of Costa Concordia caused the death of 32 people as well as numerous injuries. This accident has caused multiple class action lawsuits against Carnival on charges of negligence, breached contracts and violations of the Athens Convention Relating to the Carriage of Passengers and their Luggage by Sea, amongst other charges. More recently, the Company’s Triumph cruise ship was forced to be towed to Mexico in February 2013 following a fire in the engine room that caused the ship to lose power. The damages which ensued from the power outage caused unsanitary conditions and limited access to food. Several lawsuits have been filed against the Company in relation to the Triumph cruise ship. The Company is now facing impending lawsuits and trials in relation to both incidents.
Commerzbank | Deutsche Boerse | Meeting Date: 2013/04/19
For the third consecutive year, shareholders in Commerzbank will be asked to consider authorizing highly dilutive capital issues that will allow the Company to buy out the German government’s stake, gained as part of a bailout during the financial crisis. This time, if successful, it will likely be the last time shareholders have to endure such measures as Commerzbank hopes to be rid of the government’s quasi-controlling influence once and for all. While the prospect of a return to paying shareholder dividends and the absence of government sway over business decisions on the very near horizon sound promising, there have been some grumblings among shareholders wondering when enough is enough. If past years are any indication, an overwhelming majority of shareholders will likely back management despite some misgivings. For those that don’t defer to management, they may also be tempted to support shareholder proposals requesting a vote of no confidence in the CEO and the removal of the supervisory board chairman.
Australand Property Group | ASX | Meeting Date: 2013/04/22
During the past financial year, Australand faced several merger offers from rivals the GPT Group and Mirvac Group. Under the leadership of their new CEO, Mirvac were prepared to merge with its smaller competitor, after Australand’s board decided to reject an offer from GPT to acquire its non-residential business for approximately A$3 billion. Media reports speculated that Mirvac proposed a possible A$7 billion merger with Australand. However, Australand responded to the speculation, clarifying that it had not received a merger proposal from Mirvac. In response to Mirvac’s offer to merge with Australand, GPT revealed that it remained committed to advancing a proposal which provided compelling value for Australand.
Moody’s Corporation (MCO) | 2013/04/16
Honeywell International Inc. (HON) | 2013/04/22
Intesa Sanpaolo (ISP) | 2013/04/22
NYT: 04/12 When Shareholder Democracy Is Sham Democracy: Two weeks ago, I argued that it was hard to imagine a more compelling case for ousting directors than the one posed by Hewlett-Packard. It turns out there are many stronger cases — 41. Dealbook: 04/12 Goldman Raises Directors’ Pay by 500 Shares: Goldman’s directors, who were already among the best-compensated corporate directors in the country, will receive an additional 500 shares, for 3,000 shares a year in compensation, according to a regulatory filing submitted Friday. [Read More] Forbes: 04/11 America’s 100 Best Corporate Citizens: AT&T is the best corporate citizen in the U.S. right now, according to a new ranking by CR Magazine. That means it beat out everyone else in the Russell 1000 index of large-capitalization companies in terms of virtues like good corporate governance and environmental impact. [Read More]