Shareholder activists are conducting campaigns against a record number of Japanese companies, saying they have more than enough cash to weather the coronavirus pandemic and boost shareholder returns.
Activist investors have submitted proposals to the annual general meetings of 23 listed firms this year as of June 22, according to data from IR Japan Holdings Ltd. That already surpasses the all-time high of 16 the year before.
Money managers including Oasis Management Co., RMB Capital and Asset Value Investors Ltd. are urging companies to buy back shares, arguing they can easily do so despite the impact of the pandemic. It’s a country where return on equity for companies in the benchmark Topix index is less than half the level for those in the S&P 500 Index in the U.S.