Regulators look to reform proxy voting in CanadaComstock Images
Remember, a few years ago, when we in the business media were telling you to brace for a lot more proxy fights in the wake of Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd., Agrium Inc. and other high profile battles? Where are all those fights, anyway – were we just wrong?
Well, no, says Wes Hall, head of Kingsdale Shareholder Services, which shows up on most of the big fights in Canada. Mr. Hall explains that we're just not seeing them because they are getting settled earlier. And that's because activists are taking a much different tack lately. There are far fewer fights opening with a nasty letter to management that's made public.
"You may not see as many of those those huge, drawn out proxy fights in the future," said Mr. Hall. "People have changed their approaches," he added, and that leads to "a lot more settlements."
Instead of antagonizing boards, activists are trying to be more cooperative. In fact, some firms are trying to rebrand their styles away from the word activism, even if that's still what they do.
"They don't want to be considered an activist because an activist is in there to really fight with management, and these guys want to collaborate," said Mr. Hall. "They say 'There are things you are doing we like, and there are things we would appreciate you doing differently, and how can we work with you to do them better?"
Mr. Hall said that there are as many fights now as in 2010, when Kingsdale did 45. It's just that many of them are not out in the public eye.
"The interest in the companies has not changed. What you have seen is the [number of times people are] going all the way to a battle has changed."