If you are a shareholder in Alliance Trust you will be wanting to vote at the forthcoming AGM. If you aren't sure why, you can read my latest post on the matter (for the record I think you should vote for the new directors, but that's up to you). But I'd also say that this particular vote is about more than just the troubles at Alliance Trust.
For years now, the level of retail shareholder engagement with the firms in which we invest has been falling. Now that we hold our shares in Sipps and Isas via the various cheap and efficient platforms in the market, we don't hold shares directly, so we don't get the information we used to about the various votes we can participate in. So we don't go to AGMs, and we don't vote.
This matters: if shareholders aren't keeping an eye on company management, who is? Alliance Trust is very heavily owned by small investors, many of whom have been invested for years (if not decades), and have an intense long-term interest in the firm's future. So it makes sense that everyone who can vote does vote. The question is how.
Subscribe to MoneyWeek
Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE
Sign up to Money Morning
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
If you are a direct shareholder, this is pretty easy. You don't have to go to the meeting (although if I were you, I would it'll be fun and there will be sandwiches), and you should have had a form through by now which will allow you to vote on all the resolutions including the appointment of the new directors (not to go on... but I'd vote for them myself).
You need to return this to the registrars by 27 April. If you miss that date, you can skip the admin and just turn up with ID to vote on the day. If you don't hold the shares directly, but have them with the trust's subsidiary Alliance Trust Savings (ATS), voting is also pretty easy. Again you will have had a form in the post that allows you to vote on paper or to turn up on the day.
If, on the other hand, you hold the shares with another broker, it gets more complicated. You need to arrange it. That's because while you are the beneficial owner of the shares, your broker is the registered owner on your behalf and therefore holds your vote.
Most Hargreaves Lansdown, for example will now allow you to just call or email in details of how you want your vote cast if you aren't going to the AGM. But if you are going to the AGM (remember the sandwiches), you need to ask them to appoint you as a proxy.
They'll then issue you with a letter that will allow you to use your vote on the day. If you are taking this route, you will need to get on with it most brokers say they need to know by Thursday to get the admin done.
See you in Dundee
-
Bitcoin price one of the most-asked questions on Alexa - here's how to buy the cryptocurrencyAccording to figures from Amazon, which cover September 2023 to November 2024, pop star Taylor Swift and Bitcoin were named among the most popular Alexa queries of 2024
-
Investing for children this Christmas – five ideasIt might not come with a shiny ribbon, but an investment fund could be the gift that keeps on giving. We share five ideas if you are investing for children this Christmas.
-
House prices to crash? Your house may still be making you money, but not for much longerOpinion If you’re relying on your property to fund your pension, you may have to think again. But, says Merryn Somerset Webb, if house prices start to fall there may be a silver lining.
-
Prepare your portfolio for recessionOpinion A recession is looking increasingly likely. Add in a bear market and soaring inflation, and things are going to get very complicated for investors, says Merryn Somerset Webb.
-
Investing for income? Here are six investment trusts to buy nowOpinion For many savers and investors, income is getting hard to find. But it's not impossible to find, says Merryn Somerset Webb. Here, she picks six investment trusts that are currently yielding more than 4%.
-
Stories are great – but investors should stick to realityOpinion Everybody loves a story – and investors are no exception. But it’s easy to get carried away, says Merryn Somerset Webb, and forget the underlying truth of the market.
-
Everything is collapsing at once – here’s what to do about itOpinion Equity and bond markets are crashing, while inflation destroys the value of cash. Merryn Somerset Webb looks at where investors can turn to protect their wealth.
-
Value is starting to emerge in the marketsOpinion If you are looking for long-term value in the markets, some is beginning to emerge, says Merryn Somerset Webb. Indeed, you may soon be able to buy traditionally expensive growth stocks on the cheap, too.
-
ESG investing could end up being a classic mistakeOpinion ESG investing has been embraced with enormous speed and zeal. But think long and hard before buying in, says Merryn Somerset Webb.
-
UK house prices will fall – but not for a few yearsOpinion UK house prices look out of reach for many. But the truth is that British property is surprisingly affordable, says Merryn Somerset Webb. Prices will fall at some point – but not yet.
