ISS’s “US Shareholder Proposals: A Decade in Motion” reveals the results of its analysis of shareholder proposals submitted to US companies over the 10-year period from July 2014 through June 2024.
ISS attributed trends toward reduced voting support for environmental and social shareholder proposals to a combination of factors, including improved company practices and disclosure, more prescriptive and demanding proposals, and a more cautious and measured approach toward voting on shareholder proposals exhibited by institutional investors.
More specifically, the report highlights the increase among large-cap companies (which are most commonly targeted by shareholder proposals) in adoption/implementation of select practices, including climate change strategy, quantitative GHG reduction targets, supplier labor policy, and racial diversity metrics, and associated disclosure.
Reduced volume and support for governance and compensation proposals are largely attributed to changes in corporate governance practices, such as the adoption/implementation of proxy access rights, simple majority vote requirements, independent board chairs, and E&S-linked pay, among large-cap companies.
The report also includes trend data on shareholder proposal submittals, withdrawals, and omissions, by category (“E,” “S,” “G,” and anti-ESG).