Associated British Foods (ABF) case study
Background Associated British Foods (ABF) engages in the business of manufacturing and trading of consumer goods. One of its businesses, Primark, is among Europe’s largest clothing retail companies and accounts for almost half of ABF’s turnover. Historically, Primark clothing had a reputation for low cost and bulk provision of clothing with a limited lifetime and […]
AstraZeneca case study
Background AstraZeneca is one of Europe’s leading pharmaceutical companies, primarily focused on oncology, biopharmaceuticals, and rare disease. In 2014, as part of its defence against the Pfizer takeover bid, the company announced an ambitious revenue target. EOS identified robust succession planning for both the CEO and the chair as integral to the achievement of a […]
Making the moat of it
An investing concept widely associated with Warren Buffett, feted CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, is to find companies with wide ‘economic moats’. Generally speaking, these are the kind of companies that have developed advantages allowing them to defend their profitability against encroaching competition. A strong brand identity (created through advertising and marketing expense) might be one […]
COP16 to challenge governments to deliver on Biodiversity Plan
Fast reading We expect to see progress towards the successful and comprehensive implementation of the Biodiversity Plan at COP16. Resource mobilisation and scaling up financing for nature from all sources will be key focus areas for negotiations. Financial institutions will address their nature-related risks and impacts through underlying changes at the companies they invest in […]
Dominion Energy case study
Background Dominion Energy is an American utility company that supplies electricity and natural gas to homes, businesses, and wholesale customers. It operates through its power delivery, power generation, and gas infrastructure business segments in 15 states serving nearly seven million customers.¹ We have been engaging with the company on its climate strategy since 2011, including […]
UN AMR meeting to tackle superbugs
Fast reading AMR is a systemic problem, often caused by the misuse or overprescription of antimicrobial medicines, particularly within livestock farming. There are growing regulatory and operational risks associated with AMR, ranging from its sale, use and efficacy, to discharge and wastewater pollution. EOS has been engaging with companies on AMR since 2017, alongside our […]
Sainsbury’s case study
Background Sainsbury’s is the UK’s second largest food retailer and we have been engaging the company since 2008. Oxfam research published in 2018 had found that supermarkets’ inaction on systemic issues within global food supply chains indicated that both companies and investors were exposed to unidentified levels of risk.1 Our engagement We raised supply chain […]
Disputes proliferate in fractious vote season
Shareholders attempting to exercise their rights found themselves frustrated this vote season as recalcitrant companies pushed back on investor escalation. Meanwhile, proxy contests increased in the US following regulatory changes, allowing shareholders to consider dissident nominees alongside the company’s preferred options, with a high-profile three-way battle at Disney. Biodiversity made a strong showing via resolutions […]
Engaging on demand-side climate solutions
Engagement with fossil fuel companies – “supply-side” engagement – has been a cornerstone of EOS’s climate change engagement over the last decade. In this time, oil and gas majors have committed to ambitious methane reduction targets, a greater consensus on coal phase-outs has been established, and at COP28 there was an unprecedented reference to transitioning […]
The value of transition planning
Shareholder votes on company climate transition plans are now a key feature of the AGM season in major markets, but the ‘say-on-climate’ is still in its infancy. As a consequence, it is complex for investors to analyse a company’s climate risks and opportunities. To tackle this challenge, EOS has developed a framework to enable all […]
