Opens in new window(PDF :KB)

This edition of ProxyPulse^TM provides insights into key corporate governance and shareholder voting trends in the 2022 proxy season. It includes data on the results of 4,125 public company annual meetings held between January 1 and June 30, 2021, along with five-year trends.

Key Takeaways

The 2022 proxy season is shaping up to be an especially active one, with environmental, social, and governance (ESG) matters. Given the SEC’s recent revisions to guidance regarding shareholder resolutions, it‘s likely that many more proposals targeting climate change, diversity and inclusion, and other hot-button social issues will come to a vote. Against that backdrop, the key issues we’re watching include:

• A “race to the top” on climate change
• Evolving expectations around human capital
• The shifting landscape of shareholder activism
• Trends in retail and institutional shareholder voting

Looking Back on the 2021 Proxy Season

• Support for shareholder proposals grew steadily over the past five years.
• In the 2021 proxy season, support overall rose to 40%, on average, up from 37% in 2020.
• There is significant divergence in the voting support by retail and institutional investors. As a group, retail shareholders were half as likely to favor shareholder proposals as were institutional investors. This is true not only for all 404 shareholder proposals that Broadridge tracked for the 2021 season but also for proposals on climate and corporate political spending.

Download the full report for additional trends and insights.

DOWNLOAD THE REPORTOpens in new window(PDF :KB)