Parmalat SpA
Borsa Italiana: PLT Meeting Date: 4/16/2014
Parmalat just can’t get away from past scandals, which have left the company yet again under fire. After a decade-old corporate scandal involving fraudulent accounting using nonexistent offshore accounts, prison sentences for former top executives were recently upheld by a court ruling, drawing renewed attention to Parmalat’s board. More recently, the board has been under fire for its decision to overpay for the acquisition of Lactalis America Group at the expense of minority shareholders. That decision led to a rare court intervention into the board’s internal workings, banning certain directors and statutory auditors from attending board and committee meetings and requiring the company to reformulate the committee that reviews related party transactions. In February, in a renewed call to annull the acquisition entirely, public prosecutors requested that the entire board be removed and that Parmalat be run by a court-appointed administrator. Around the same time, 9 of 11 directors announced their intention to resign from the board. While shareholders might be relieved at the chance to install an almost entirely new board, Parmalat has also requested shareholder approval of amendments to its articles that would reduce scrutiny of board independence criteria and potentially reduce the number of independent directors on the board, leaving shareholders to wonder whether the company has learned anything from its past mistakes.
NESTLE SA
SIX Swiss Exchange: NESN Meeting Date: 4/10/2014
SVENSKA CELLULOSA AKTIEBOLAGET
NASDAQ OMX Nordic Stockholm: SCA.A Meeting Date: 4/10/2014
THE GOODYEAR TIRE & RUBBER COMPANY
NASDAQ: GT Meeting Date: 4/14/2014
RIO TINTO PLC (see Proxy Season Insider here)
London Stock Exchange: RIO Meeting Date 4/15/2014
TELECOM ITALIA
Borsa Italiana: TIT Meeting Date 4/16/2014