FAT PROFITS, BIG DIVIDEND… AND SHAREHOLDERS STILL UNHAPPY; ANXIOUS DIRECTORS

FAT PROFITS, BIG DIVIDEND… AND SHAREHOLDERS STILL UNHAPPY; ANXIOUS DIRECTORS

FAT PROFITS, BIG DIVIDEND… AND SHAREHOLDERS STILL UNHAPPY

Woodside Energy’s mega profits and dividends appear to have failed to appease many of its investors, who reckon the company is failing to deliver a credible climate strategy.

In fact, some shareholders are now  planning a revolt at next week’s AGM.

It’s an unusual case where shareholders are taking action against the Board based not on a company’s financial performance or its leadership but on ESG actions.

In an attempt to appease investors, Woodside’s Board will put climate reporting to a non-binding vote every three years.

ANXIOUS DIRECTORS

Sentiment among company directors has improved slightly in the past six months, but many are still worried about deteriorating business conditions and anticipate a further weakening in the Australian economy over the next year.

The Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD)’s latest Director Sentiment survey found that 52 per cent of directors believe  interest rate hikes are negatively impacting their business – almost three times higher than a year ago.

Other top concerns on company directors’ minds include skill shortages, the risk of a recession and the rate of insolvencies which were at a 3.5-year high last month.

CEO SUCCESSION: FICTION VS REALITY

When Logan Roy, the fearsome fictional media mogul at the heart of TV drama Succession, was killed by the writers in episode three, shares in his media empire Waystar Royco plunged. “There he is. That is Dad”, his youngest son Roman said as he watched the stock drop on his phone at the news of the death.

But what happens in reality when a CEO dies? A study of 240 US companies by the University of Notre Dame and the University of Georgia found share prices go up nearly half the time when a CEO leaves this mortal coil. If they’re particularly ineffective, the stock usually surges. On the other hand, share prices tend to plunge on average when a successful CEO dies.

WHAT’S IN A (NICK)NAME?

Official job titles are a dime a dozen in most workplaces. But what about nicknames for your boss or colleagues?

Well, it seems there’s loads of them being bandied about, based on what ABC Radio Sydney listeners told Breakfast host James Valentine when he ran a competition to find the best workplace nickname this week.

Some of those that made the short list were: Repeat (after a bloke called Pete who always needed someone to redo anything he fixed); Milo (because he was never ‘Quick’); Chuck (for someone who could always be relied on to ‘bring it up’ at a meeting); Mirrors (a supervisor with a fondness for gazing at his reflection); and Whisper (because they never shouted drinks at the pub after work).

And the top workplace nickname? Harvey Norman, for an apprentice who was always ‘interest free’ when it came to his job!


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