Proxy Voting Turnout Small for "Say on Pay" Written By: Miranda Marquit 2008-05-23 13:39:00 Shareholders aren't voting on proxy issues dealing with executive pay. With the proxy voting season more than half done (there are only a few companies left with shareholder votes), a somewhat disturbing trend is developing with regard to "say on pay." Through proxy voting, shareholders can make their will known.
So far, this is hands-down the largest commitment to global warming that any company worldwide has put forth. This amount includes the $10 billion that the company has already committed to reducing their own carbon footprint, largely by means of decreasing energy consumption at the 15,000 properties worldwide that it owns or rents.
I continue to buy overweight financials, especially the big ones like Citigroup (C), Bank of America (BAC), JP Morgan Chase (JPM), Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs (GS) and Lehman Brothers (LEH). I'm even short some puts on the Financials ETF (XLF). In the short term, financials have to go higher as hedge funds cover shorts and, more importantly, mutual fund managers buy to correct the underexposure to the financial sector. Most Fed easing cycles imply very good returns if you buy just as they begin. The exceptions? The last one. I'm hold financials for the short run but I'm going to lighten up on these as this rally progresses. Why? The recipe is in place for some stagflation.
Stagflation is a period of inflation and low or no growth in the economy. The last time this existed was back in the 1970's in Britain and the US.
