Q2 2020 spotlight on

TASK FORCE ON CLIMATE-RELATED FINANCIAL DISCLOSURES REPORT

Hanneke Smits, CEO, and Lloyd McAllister, responsible investment analyst discuss our latest Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) report.

Watch the video

Highlights from Q2 2020

									We voted at
279
Annual General Meetings
+
13
Extraordinary General Meetings
on behalf of our clients

								

									We engaged with
30
companies
for the primary purpose of raising ESG concerns

								

									Examples of engagement with companies included matters such as:
												diversity
supply chains
climate change
auditor tenure
human capital management
compensation
environmental solutions

											

								

Voting profile: Q2 2020

During the quarter, we exercised our clients’ voting rights at a total of 292 shareholder meetings.

Across all regions, votes were instructed against management recommendations on 681 separate resolutions, which equated to 53% of the 292 meetings.

¹ In favour of management on all resolutions.
² Against management on one or more resolutions.
³ Took no action owing to share blocking.

took no action³

132

in favour of management¹

abstained

154

against management²

Key issues of concern

ESG quality reviews

We conduct quality reviews analysing the separate ESG aspects of all companies our global sector analysts are considering recommending for investment. These quality reviews are undertaken by our responsible investment team who award an ESG rating score out of 10. Each quarter key issues of concern are identified and are closely monitored by our responsible investment analysts.

Lack of progress by North American companies in addressing compensation structures that allow executives to be rewarded for poor performance.

Absence of substance and action following support given to the US Business Roundtable’s statement on corporate purpose.

Short-term decisions taken in relation to employment matters at the expected expense of long-term performance.

Examples of ESG engagement

Newton firmly believes that responsibly managed companies are best placed to achieve sustainable competitive advantage and provide strong long-term investment opportunities. For this reason, we engage companies on a variety of environmental, social and governance matters.

Click on each pin for examples of our global engagement.