695: Shareholder Activism and Societal Challenges (20523)

Organizer(s)

• TT

  Torben Trapp

  U. of Edinburgh, United Kingdom
• JA

  John Amis

  U. of Edinburgh, United Kingdom

Discussant(s)

• GD

  Gerald Davis

  U. of Michigan, United States

Presenter(s)

• MG

  Maria Goranova

  U. of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, United States
• RS

  Rieneke Slager

  U. of Groningen, Netherlands
• MW

  Margarethe Wiersema

  U. of California, Irvine, United States

This presenter symposium engages with the overarching question of how shareholder activism affects societal challenges. While shareholder activism research has gained popularity in recent years, too little is still known about its effects on broader societal problems such as climate change or economic inequalities. Particularly, when accounting for a substantial increase in ownership concentration of assets over recent years, that are managed by fewer and ever more powerful, and oftentimes institutional, investors. These investors have been successful in using shareholder activism to bring about organizational change, reshape priorities of target firms, and affect their agenda on climate change and other societal outcomes in various ways. In this symposium, we will unpack the inherent complexity within this powerful industry, understand more about specific types of institutional investors, learn how intermediaries play a role in shaping their agenda, and discuss how it affects the agenda of firms when some of their largest investors are simultaneously invested in their market competitors.

Presentations:

• 10:30 – 12:00 CT (GMT-5/UTC-5)

  695: When Your Shareholders Invest in Your Rivals: Implications of Common Ownership for Stock Buybacks (20523)
  

  Author: Maria Goranova – U. of Wisconsin, Milwaukee

  Author: Richard L. Priem – Texas Christian U.

  Author: Hermann Ndofor – Indiana U., Indianapolis

  Author: Wanrong Hou – U. of Texas Rio Grande Valley
• 10:30 – 12:00 CT (GMT-5/UTC-5)

  695: Shareholder Engagement for Societal Challenges: The Role of Intermediaries (20523)
  

  Author: Rieneke Slager – U. of Groningen
• 10:30 – 12:00 CT (GMT-5/UTC-5)

  695: Asset Managers and Climate Change: Shareholder Activism of Common and Universal Owners during Crises (20523)
  

  Author: Torben Trapp – U. of Edinburgh

  Author: John Matthew Amis – U. of Edinburgh
• 10:30 – 12:00 CT (GMT-5/UTC-5)

  695: Activist Hedge Funds: Their Role and Impact on Strategic Decision-Making and Corporate Governance (20523)
  

  Author: Margarethe F. Wiersema – U. of California, Irvine