Shareholder advisory group tells members to reject £70m package of WPP chief executive Martin Sorrell May 18, 2016 Shareholder advisory group ShareSoc has recommended its members reject the remuneration package of WPP chief executive Sir Martin Sorrell. The advice, issued today ahead of the firm’s 8 June AGM, comes after WPP last month confirmed Sorrell’s total pay package for 2015 totalled £70m. The figure included a £62.8m long-term bonus. Read more: Martin Sorrell's [...]
There’s little logic to 2016’s shareholder revolts against big executive pay-outs May 4, 2016 Reporting of the crisis at BHS has focused as much on the ethics of Sir Philip Green’s behaviour as it has on the plight of the company itself. Sir John Collins, who put Green’s name forward for a knighthood, has said he should be stripped of it if his handling of the beleaguered company is [...]
Shining a light on pay disparity can be the harbinger of change May 3, 2016 With his recent £70m pay check, Sir Martin Sorrell has cast himself once again as either pantomime villain or Hero of New Capitalism. Whichever side you take, WPP’s employees and the wider world now know his salary, which colours the extent to which we agree with his L’Oréal worthy proclamation: “I’m worth it”. Changes for the good in pay [...]
A Spring is in the air this May – Shareholder revolt set to build with Aviva and Reckitt Benckiser meetings May 3, 2016 Company bosses are braced for further uprisings this week. Consumer goods group Reckitt Benckiser, insurance giant Aviva, and FTSE 250 hedge fund Man Group all host shareholders for their annual general meetings. Last week the shareholder spring picked up pace as investors voted against boardroom pay rewards for engineering firm Weir Group and Shire, the FTSE [...]
Sir Martin Sorrell’s £70m: The defence (and not just from Sorrell and WPP) April 29, 2016 Advertising giant WPP today confirmed Sir Martin Sorrell's pay package totalled £70m last year in its annual report. The figure included a £62.8m long-term bonus. In recent weeks, Sorrell has been forced to defend his pay. And, perhaps unsurprisingly, WPP's annual report also defended its chief executive and founder: “While the value of Sir Martin Sorrell’s award is very [...]
Shareholder voices heard loud & clear April 28, 2016 The shareholder spring picked up pace yesterday, when investors voted against boardroom pay rewards for engineering firm Weir Group and Shire, the FTSE 100 pharmaceutical group. The revolts came on the back of major uprisings at oil giant BP, miner Anglo American, energy firm Centrica and financial behemoth Citigroup. “This year has seen a ‘spring [...]
Revenue jumps at advertising giant WPP following battle over Sir Martin Sorrell’s £63m pay deal April 28, 2016 Revenue spiked at advertising giant WPP in the first three months of the year, jumping 10.5 per cent to £3.1bn, well above forecasts off the back of strong performance in North America. The figures Reported revenue climbed 10.5 per cent in sterling terms to £3.1bn. On a constant current basis, revenue was up nine per cent [...]
Not so much revolution as boardroom evolution April 28, 2016 We may not be in the throes of a full-on shareholder spring – as happened back in 2012 – but investors are definitely flexing their muscles. They railed against generous executive pay packages at BP and Anglo American (with 59 per cent and 42 per cent rejecting the remuneration deals, respectively), while smaller double-digit rebellions have [...]
Facebook’s share price jumps after it beats expectations April 27, 2016 Facebook's share price has jumped after the social network announced results that topped already high expectations. The social media giant's share price jumped over 8.8 per cent in after hours trading. Facebook, which expected to report strong, steady growth, reported revenue of $5.4bn (£3.7bn) in the three months ending 31 March. That's against the average analyst estimate of $5.3bn, and [...]
How the internet is driving UK advertising market to be the fastest growing in Europe April 26, 2016 The UK has the fastest growing major advertising market in Europe, according to a new report. Adspend totalled £20.1bn in 2015, up 7.5 per cent on 2014. This was the biggest year-on-year growth on record since 2010. According to the Advertising Association/Warc Expenditure Report, spending on the internet made up £8.6bn of this, up 17.3 [...]