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Top Exxon directors cruise to re-election in spite of activist opposition

Exxon Mobil financiers on Wednesday voted to reelect Chairman Darren Woods and Lead Director Joseph Hooley by wide margins regardless of activist investor opposition.

The two had actually faced a vote no project by shareholder rights activists over the top U.S. oil business's suit against climate-focused financiers who had filed, then withdrawn, a. measure for the meeting.

The campaign amounted to a test of whether leading fund companies. would rally to safeguard the small shareholders whose resolutions. have put subjects like the environment and workforce diversity at. the center of many corporate yearly meetings.

Wednesday's outcomes suggested the answer was no. Exxon stated. its 12 director nominees were all easily re-elected with in between. 87% to 98% support and average assistance of 95%, simply listed below last. year's 96% average.

The result signifies a belief that we are on the best track. by overwhelmingly re-electing our directors, Exxon said in a. statement after the results were announced.

Independent corporate governance expert Francis Byrd. stated top property management companies who have the biggest batches of. Exxon shares did not seem to see any risk posed by Exxon's. suit as strong enough to validate crucial votes.

He contrasted their position with authorities from the. California Public Personnel' Retirement System, which voted. against all Exxon's nominees and whose CEO stated Exxon's match. threatens to silence investors everywhere.

NOT SO 'HAIR-ON-FIRE'

Top funds might have felt it was not as essential, not as. hair-on-fire as CalPERS did, Byrd said in an interview. Maybe. they're believing Exxon is going a little overboard however we'll. allow it, he said.

Douglas Chia, president of seeking advice from company Soundboard. Governance, said the vote results can be viewed as a triumph for. Exxon provided the vote-no campaign. 87% assistance is greater than I. expected the lowest vote-getter to get, Chia said. via-email.

Leading Exxon financiers BlackRock and Vanguard did. not react to questions. Another, State Street,. decreased to comment.

Mary Minette, senior director of investor advocacy for. Mercy Financial investment Solutions, among the socially-responsible firms. that started the vote-no project, stated it a minimum of lowered the. variety of director support from in between 91% to 99% in 2015.

The change, Minette said, reveals Exxon has some work to. do to gain back the trust of its financiers after its attacks on. the shareholder proposal procedure.

YET ANOTHER REPORT

The company sued environment activist groups Arjuna Capital. and Follow This in January, continuing the case even after the. 2 withdraw their proposition. Exxon stated regulators ought to examine. the procedure through which measures appear on corporate ballots.

During Wednesday's online meeting Woods, likewise CEO,. slammed other resolution filers as their own steps came. up. This is yet another example of using a legitimate. investor process to advance an activist agenda not consistent. with growing shareholder value, Woods said at one point in. reaction to a require a review of Exxon's social impact.

He pointed out Exxon's own environmental efforts and said that. while wind and solar have a crucial role to play, they are. merely not sufficient. Heavy markets require carbon capture and. storage, biofuels, and hydrogen, he said, all sectors in which. Exxon contends.

Other vote results at Exxon also suggested general support. for the business's board from financiers. For instance, Exxon said. 92% of shares voted favored an advisory procedure on its pay, up. from 91% last year.

In addition, a procedure requiring Exxon to report on. plastic production won about 21% assistance, down from 25% last. year. The aforementioned social impact report won support from. 7% of votes cast, down from 17% in 2015, Exxon said.

(source: Reuters)