Shareholders Have a Voice. They Must Use It More.
Scottish Mortgage’s AGM was a healthy reminder of the benefits of shareholder democracy.
If someone had just lost you a third of your money you might have a few questions to ask them. How? Why? How long until you make it back? That sort of thing.
And so it is with investors in Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust — in which I am a long-term shareholder — one of the biggest and most popular growth and tech-oriented vehicles in the UK. Its shares are down an unpleasant 56% from their highs in November 2021 and 11% in the last year. Things aren’t so awful if you look longer term (the shares are up 25% over five years, a mere 60% less than the S&P 500) or very short term (down only 7% this year so far). But still, questions. Luckily for the shareholders (if not the managers) as a listed investment trust, Scottish Mortgage is obliged to have an open annual general meeting. So earlier this week around 100 shareholders turned up at Edinburgh’s Royal College of Physicians to have their say – a lot of their say.