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The latest publication in our Market Tracker AGM trend report series identifies emerging trends and best practice for public companies currently managing the challenges and opportunities of the post-pandemic landscape. Using data compiled from the Market Tracker database, we review the FTSE 350 AGMs held during the 2022 AGM season to examine how AGM formats have adapted to post-coronavirus (COVID 19) ‘normality’ and which of the innovations introduced to accommodate the temporary safety restrictions have endured.

This report also provides a mid-season update on shareholder voting patterns. With executive pay packets slowly returning to their pre-coronavirus quantum, the reaction of shareholders and whether they have held management to account for this uptick in the pay packets of senior executives remains a hot topic. In addition to investor revolts against executive remuneration, the report explores other resolutions attracting significant dissent.

Report highlights:

• 117 of 270 FTSE 350 companies (43%) adopted a hybrid AGM format

• Hybrid AGMs were more popular with FTSE 100 companies, with 63 out of 99 (64%) opting for this format, compared with 54 out of 171 (32%) FTSE 250 companies

• six companies adopted an exclusively virtual format (2.2%) for their AGMs, five of them from the FTSE 250

• eight companies (3%) held their AGMs as physical meetings with restricted attendance

• 177 FTSE 350 companies (66%) encouraged shareholders in the Notice of AGM to vote their proxies in advance of the meeting

• 155 companies (57%) recommended that shareholders send in their questions via email prior to the AGM taking place

• of the 224 FTSE 350 companies that have now published their AGM results, nine companies (4%) received at least one failed resolution, with two receiving two failed resolutions

• 52 FTSE 350 companies (FTSE 100: 20; FTSE 250: 32) received at least one ‘significant no vote’ (at least 20% shareholder opposition) that nevertheless passed at their AGMs (23%). Of the 52 companies, 16 (FTSE 100: 5 FTSE 250: 11) received multiple significant no votes that nevertheless passed, bringing the total to 76

• the number of resolutions receiving at least 20% opposition increases to 87 at 55 FTSE 350 companies (25%) when combining significant no votes that nevertheless passed with the failed resolutions

• five resolutions have been withdrawn at five companies

Market commentary

The report contains expert commentary from:

• Gareth Sykes, UK Head of Corporate Governance Advisory, Herbert Smith Freehills

• Aisling Arthur, Senior Counsel, and Andrew Gillen, Head of Corporate M&A and ECM, Travers Smith