Q4 2020 spotlight on

ENGAGING FOR A GREENER FUTURE

Why engagement is an effective way to support the energy sector’s transition to a lower-carbon future.

									We voted at
61
Annual General Meetings
+
31
Extraordinary General Meetings
on behalf of our clients

								

									We engaged with
41
companies
for the primary purpose of raising ESG concerns

								

									Examples of engagement with companies included matters such as:
												diversity and inclusion
supply chains
climate change
human capital management
compensation
energy transition
environmental solutions
board effectiveness
succession planning
product safety

											

								

Voting profile: Q4 2020

During the quarter, we exercised our clients’ voting rights at a total of 92 shareholder meetings.

Across all regions, votes were instructed against management recommendations on 85 separate resolutions, which equated to 27.2% of the 92 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

in favour of management¹

abstained

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.

Executive pay arrangements failing to reflect the impact of Covid-19 on the business and employees.

Companies’ continued timidity in disclosing their approach and targets in relation to corporate social responsibility and sustainability matters.

Nascent policies and processes addressing specific ESG concerns, such as climate change.

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.