© Reuters. Toyota (TM) shareholders vote down climate resolution, show support for management
Toyota (NYSE:) shareholders handed the Japanese company a win at their shareholder’s meeting today when investors voted down a resolution urging greater disclosure of its climate lobbying. Investors also backed all 10 members of the board, including Chairman Akio Toyoda, despite concerns about board independence raised by prominent U.S. proxy advisers. The breakdowns of both votes won’t be released until Thursday.
Toyoda, the grandson of the company’s founder, was re-elected with 96% support last year.
The climate resolution, submitted by Danish pension fund AkademikerPension and two other European asset managers, sought to force Toyota to disclose additional information concerning its lobbying efforts concerning climate change.
The resolution was widely expected to fail after Toyota’s board advised shareholders to vote against it. The automaker’s management traditionally receives substantial backing from shareholders, including various group companies and suppliers.
The shareholder meeting took place just one day after the automaker revealed its ambitious roadmap for electric vehicles involving solid-state batteries and radical production changes, signaling to investors the company’s intention to capture a big slice of EV market share.
“I believe that Toyota today can manage its business with a sense of speed,” Toyota CEO Koji Sato told shareholders.
Shares of TM are up 4.84% in pre-market trading on Wednesday after jumping over 5% on Tuesday.
Read the full article here
