YOU’RE OUT OF TOUCH
Investor blasts Unilever over plans to axe British base
UNILEVER bosses have been branded ‘out of touch with shareholders’ amid growing opposition to plans to axe its British headquarters.
The Anglo-Dutch company, whose brands include Marmite, Domestos and PG Tips, wants to abandon its legal home in the UK and base itself solely in the Netherlands.
But the proposals have faced opposition from British shareholders with a string of major City institutions including Aviva Investors, Legal & General Investment Management and M&G vowing to block the move.
With another fund manager joining the rebellion yesterday, there is a real risk that Unilever will lose a vote later this month.
Taking aim at Unilever bosses, Job Curtis, who runs the City of London Investment Trust, said: ‘It feels that they are out of touch with shareholders. They have not done their homework.’
Curtis’s £1.5bn fund is part of savings firm Janus Henderson and owns fewer than 0.1pc of Unilever shares on the London Stock Exchange.
Columbia Threadneedle – which had previously only said it had concerns – said yesterday it is now voting against the move.
City sources said that Unilever bosses sound increasingly downhearted in talks about the plans. One insider said: ‘It’s as if they feel they’ve lost already.’
The comments came as a financial adviser trade body criticised the voting arrangements amid fears that ordinary investors are being denied a fair say.
The mounting opposition betrays deep anger over the way the plans have been handled by Unilever bosses. It is feared that ditching the UK will expose British investors to punishing Dutch taxes, although Unilever insists they will be protected. The stock will be removed from the FTSE 100 index if it axes its UK base as it will no longer be a British company – meaning many investment funds will be forced to sell their holdings for whatever price they can get.
Unilever chairman Marijn Dekkers and chief financial officer Graeme Pitkethly have been leading a charm offensive in London that has failed to impress, and both could face calls to quit.
Chief executive Paul Polman spent much of last week at a United Nations conference in New York, where he also met US shareholders.
One senior insider said: ‘ The way the company has engaged with shareholders has gone down really badly. Where is Paul Polman? If he’s this great chief executive, why isn’t he here?’
Unilever must win the support of investors who hold 75pc of its London shares for the move to take place. It must also get backing from more than 50pc of individual shareholders who vote.
Shares fell 0.6pc, or 27p, to 4200.5p yesterday.
A Unilever spokesman said: ‘We have held around 200 meetings with shareholders over the last six months and will continue to engage extensively in the weeks ahead.’