PRESS RELEASE
31 AUGUST 2017

NIKKO ASSET MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.

Nikko Asset Management Enhances Governance,with Full Disclosure of its Voting Results
Also announces results of 2016/17 Shareholder Meetings - Opposition almost doubles
Nikko Asset Management today announces its commitment to disclose the results of individual voting in
the companies in which it invests at shareholder meetings, in accordance with the Principles for
Responsible Institutional Investors set forth in Japan’s Stewardship Code. With this, every quarter the firm
openly communicates its voting for each investee company and each individual proposal on its website(http://en.nikkoam.com/voting-rights-results), ensuring full accountability and transparency in representing
its clients. Nikko Asset Management votes are cast based on its Guidelines on Exercising Voting Rights.
Further strengthening transparency and governance in its voting and other stewardship activities, in June
2016 the firm set up its Stewardship & Voting Rights Policy Committee and in March 2017 established a
dedicated department responsible for engagement with investee companies - including for holdings inpassively managed funds.
Today, Nikko Asset Management also announces that at the shareholder meetings from July 2016 throughJune 2017 of 2,211 Japanese companies in which Nikko Asset Management invests, the firm cast 3,876
negative votes against 22,956 proposals. This translates to 16.9% of total votes, up from the 9.1% in 2015/16– almost doubling. See the tables on the following page (Votes by Proposal Type) for further details.
The ratio of nay votes against proposals for appropriation of surpluses rose to 9.4% from 4.3% in 2015/16,
while the ratio of nay votes against proposals for election/dismissal of directors rose to 18.5% from 8.6% in
2015/16. The large increases in both figures resulted from Nikko Asset Management’s adoption of more
stringent voting criteria, as well as efforts to more fully reflect judgments based on qualitative analysis andengagement by its in-house analysts in the voting process. At the same time, the ratio of nay votes againstelection/dismissal of corporate auditors dropped to 9.4% from 12.3% in 2015/16 due to an increase in thenumber of candidates meeting the criteria for independence. Finally, the ratio of nay votes against
proposals for anti-takeover defense remained high, edging up to 90.9% from 89.6% in 2015/16.
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Votes by Proposal Type
1. Company-generated Proposals
July 2016 – June 2017
Proposal
Yea

Nay

Subtotal(For Ref.) July 2015 – June 2016
Nay
ratio

Yea

Nay

Nay
ratio

Subtotal

1,344

140

1,484

9.4%

1,426

64

1,490

4.3%

597

57

654

8.7%

855

85

940

9.0%

Election/Dismissal of directors

14,1473,208

17,35518.5%

15,085

1,412

16,497

8.6%

Election/Dismissal
auditors

1,676

174

1,8509.4%

2,566

360

2,926

12.3%

165

47212

22.2%

177

65

242

26.9%

511

18529

3.4%

898

16914

1.8%

233

88321

27.4%

238

51289

17.6%

12120

132

90.9%

12103

115

89.6%

Restructuring

45853

15.1%

492

51

3.9%

Selection of corporate auditors

442

464.3%

461

472.1%

Other

306

14

320

4.4%

142

4

146

2.7%

19,0803,876

22,956

16.9%

21,494

2,163

23,657

9.1%

Appropriation of surpluses
Partial revision
incorporation

toarticles

ofofcorporate

Retirement benefit payments
Revision of executive remunerationamount
Granting of stock acquisition rights(Stock Option Plan)
Granting of stock acquisition rights(anti-takeover measures)Total

2. Shareholder Proposals
July 2016 – June 2017(For Ref.) July 2015 – June 2016

Proposal
Yea

Nay

Subtotal

Yea ratio

Yea

Nay

Subtotal

Yea ratio

Appropriation of surpluses

821080.0%841266.7%

Election/Dismissal of officers

153

54

1.9%

133

34

2.9%

8149

157

5.1%

11104

115

9.6%

17204

221

7.7%

20141

161

12.4%

Other proposals(incl.
revisionincorporation)

toTotalarticlesofNikko Asset Management Co., Ltd.
Midtown Tower, 9-7-1 Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo, 107-6242, Japan
en.nikkoam.com

2About Nikko Asset Management
With US$184.1 billion (20.68 trillion yen)* under management, Nikko Asset Management is one of Asia’s largest assetmanagers, providing high-conviction, active fund management across a range of Equity, Fixed Income, Multi-Asset andAlternative strategies. In addition, its complementary range of passive strategies covers more than 20 indices andincludes some of Asia’s largest exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
Headquartered in Asia since 1959, the firm represents more than 200** investment professionals and over 30
nationalities across 9 countries. More than 300 banks, brokers, financial advisors and life insurance companies aroundthe world distribute the company’s products.
The investment teams benefit from a unique global perspective complemented by the firm's historic Asian DNA,striving to deliver consistent excellence in performance. The firm also prides itself on its progressive solution-driven
approach, which has led to many innovative funds launched for its clients.
For more information about Nikko Asset Management and to access its investment insights, please visit the firm’s
homepage.
* Consolidated assets under management and sub-advisory of Nikko Asset Management and its subsidiaries as of June 30, 2017.
** As of June 30, 2017, including employees of Nikko Asset Management and its subsidiaries.

Important Information
This document is prepared by Nikko Asset Management Co., Ltd. and/or its affiliates (Nikko AM) and is for distribution
only under such circumstances as may be permitted by applicable laws. This document does not constituteinvestment advice or a personal recommendation and it does not consider in any way the suitability orappropriateness of the subject matter for the individual circumstances of any recipient.
This document is for information purposes only and is not intended to be an offer, or a solicitation of an offer, to buy
or sell any investments or participate in any trading strategy. Moreover, the information in this material will not affectNikko AM’s investment strategy in any way. The information and opinions in this document have been derived fromor reached from sources believed in good faith to be reliable but have not been independently verified. Nikko AM
makes no guarantee, representation or warranty, express or implied, and accepts no responsibility or liability for theaccuracy or completeness of this document. No reliance should be placed on any assumptions, forecasts, projections,estimates or prospects contained within this document. This document should not be regarded by recipients as asubstitute for the exercise of their own judgment. Opinions stated in this document may change without notice.
In any investment, past performance is neither an indication nor guarantee of future performance and a loss of capital
may occur. Estimates of future performance are based on assumptions that may not be realised. Investors should be
able to withstand the loss of any principal investment. The mention of individual stocks, sectors, regions or countries
within this document does not imply a recommendation to buy or sell.
Nikko AM accepts no liability whatsoever for any loss or damage of any kind arising out of the use of all or any part ofthis document, provided that nothing herein excludes or restricts any liability of Nikko AM under applicableregulatory rules or requirements.
All information contained in this document is solely for the attention and use of the intended recipients. Any use
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at persons in Japan nor is it intended for distribution to persons in Japan. Registration Number: Director of the Kanto
Nikko Asset Management Co., Ltd.
Midtown Tower, 9-7-1 Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo, 107-6242, Japan
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Japan/Japan Investment Advisers Association/Japan Securities Dealers Association.
United Kingdom and rest of Europe: This document constitutes a financial promotion for the purposes of theFinancial Services and Markets Act 2000 (as amended) (FSMA) and the rules of the Financial Conduct Authority (theFCA) in the United Kingdom (the FCA Rules).
This document is communicated by Nikko Asset Management Europe Ltd, which is authorised and regulated in theUnited Kingdom by the FCA (122084). It is directed only at (a) investment professionals falling within article 19 of theFinancial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotions) Order 2005, (as amended) (the Order) (b) certain highnet worth entities within the meaning of article 49 of the Order and (c) persons to whom this document mayotherwise lawfully be communicated (all such persons being referred to as relevant persons) and is only available tosuch persons and any investment activity to which it relates will only be engaged in with such persons.
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making any investment. In the event that you choose not to do so, you should consider whether the investment
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This material is for the use of researchers, financial advisers and wholesale investors (in accordance with Schedule 1,Clause 3 of the Financial Markets Conduct Act 2013 in New Zealand). This material has been prepared without taking
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