On this measure, a retail shareholder with just one share carries the same weight as a large institution with a 10 per cent stake.
That brings the second hurdle sharply into focus. With a number of large institutions – including UniSuper, Colonial First State, Phoenix Portfolios, Legg Mason and several others – now openly opposing the transaction, it would appear that more than 20 per cent of the shares are already lined up against the deal. That was backed up by similar advice from the Australian Shareholders' Association, although two other major proxy advisors - CGI Glass Lewis and ISS - both recommended clients vote in favour.įor the deal to get across the line, 50 per cent of shareholders owning more than 75 per cent of the stock need to vote in favour. Should that occur, it would be a major blow to the Westfield co-founder's credibility and his lofty standing within the Australian business world.Īs revealed by ABC Online on Monday last week, Ownership Matters - an advisor to institutional investors and superannuation funds - recommended its clients with an interest in Westfield Retail Trust vote against the deal. Opposition is mounting by the day to Mr Lowy's plan to merge the Westfield Group with the Westfield Retail Trust, to the point that there is a serious chance that shareholders at tomorrow morning's meeting at Sydney's Sofitel Hotel will vote down the deal.
If the Football Federation Australia chairman's grim expression during the post-match photos betrayed his apprehension about the team's prospects in Brazil, the desperate scramble this week at Westfield's Sydney headquarters points to an even greater crisis within Lowy's business orbit. Judging by their less than impressive performance in Monday night's friendly against a weakened Bafana Bafana, the Socceroos are facing an uphill battle in next month's World Cup. Frank Lowy's future is bearing down on two fronts.
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