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1 of 2 | A Norfolk Southern train passes done nan halfway of nan colony of East Palestine, Ohio successful Feb. 2023. On Monday, Norfolk Southern Alan Shaw defended his activity of nan institution and nan caller study captious of his management. File photograph by Aaron Josefczyk/UPI | License Photo
April 29 (UPI) -- An different proxy conflict is astir to return spot for power of Norfolk Southern railroad amid a study captious of institution activity that calls for a alteration successful management.
The Ohio-based Ancora Holdings Group connected Monday said yes to Glass, Lewis and Company's telephone for Norfolk Southern Corporation shareholders to ballot to elite six caller Ancora-backed committee members astatine Norfolk's upcoming May 9 shareholders meeting.
"We judge Ancora has presented a compelling lawsuit for supporting a important overhaul of nan Company's existent leadership," Glass Lewis' study noted regarding nan request for a alteration successful activity astatine Norfolk Southern.
The San Francisco, Calif.-based Glass Lewis is simply a starring independent proxy advisory firm, and Ancora owns a ample equity liking successful nan Atlanta, Ga.-based Norfolk Southern Corporation.
Glass Lewis had recommended to shareholders Ancora nominees Betsy Atkins, James Barber Jr., William Clyburn Jr., Sameh Fahmy, Gilbert Lamphere and Allison Landry.
They besides called for existent committee Chair Amy Miles, committee head Claude Mongeau and Norfolk Southern's CEO Alan Shaw to "be instantly replaced owed to their evident work for sustained underperformance" successful their existent occupation roles.
It is considered reasonably different but not uncommon for a proxy patient to get progressive successful nan measurement Glass Lewis has.
On Monday, Norfolk Southern's CEO was connected CNBC "to talk really he and nan existent activity squad are creating 'A Better Way' for our customers, labor and shareholders," nan institution posted on X.
"We vigorously disagree pinch that report," Shaw said Monday connected CNBC's "Closing Bell Overtime" show astir Lewis Glass report.
The Glass Lewis study states that it is "not readily evident" to them really Norfolk Southern nether Shaw and his team's activity "had built up a sufficiently affirmative way grounds specified that investors mightiness reasonably person nan patience to let guidance to instrumentality a comparatively caller operating strategy."
Monday afternoon, Shaw defended his guidance of Norfolk Southern and was captious of nan report.
"What it fails to do is return into relationship nan meaningful advancement and alteration that our committee has deliberately put distant that is making america a safer and much profitable railroad," said Shaw.
It was noted really aggregate labour unions "have now taken nan comparatively bonzer measurement of publically supporting" nan "activist hedge money successful Ancora" successful their effort to oust Shaw and switch different Norfolk Southern committee members, which nan study says "raises further questions" astir nan company's existent management.
"It's clear Ancora is making backroom deals," Shaw claimed Monday connected "Closing Bell Overtime."
"We stay really engaged pinch our national workforce," he said, noting really his guidance squad still has nan support of 11 of their 13 railroad unions.
Norfolk Southern has been done a bid of ineligible challenges since its highly publicized Ohio train derailment successful February past year, and nan ensuing biology ramifications which came arsenic a result, successful summation to a multi-million dollar net loss.
In early April, it was announced that Norfolk Southern had reached a tentative $600 cardinal colony successful nan East Palestine derailment.
In March, 3 Norfolk Southern trains were progressive successful a collision successful eastbound Pennsylvania erstwhile 2 engines ending up successful nan Lehigh River adjacent Allentown.
