Adnams’ chairman and senior independent director suffered a revolt as more than a third of shareholders voted against their re-election, The Times reports.
At the annual meeting Jonathan Adnams, the company’s chairman, was the subject of a 36.66% no-vote, while Steven Sharp, the senior independent director saw 37.1% of shareholders voting against him.
The investors are unhappy with the directors for continuing to beyond the nine years recommended under the corporate governance code, as well the company’s under-performance.
Last week, the board revealed that Adnams and Sharp would both be stepping down at or before the 2025 annual meeting, although shareholders were still asked to reappoint them for a further three-year term at the annual meeting.
The share price of Adnams, which is listed on the Aquis small companies exchange, has fallen from more than £100 in 2020 to £21.50, having lost two thirds of its value over the past 12 months. In May, Adnams announced a pre-tax loss of £4m and it has paid dividends only twice since 2019.
One shareholder who attended the meeting in Suffolk, told The Times: “It was a pretty hostile meeting with a lot of shareholders speaking from the floor against the management. The management presentation was pretty apologetic too, admitting they had made mistakes in a difficult market.”
Another investor said: “In any normal public company a director would be so embarrassed at the level of shareholder disappointment in their performance that they would voluntarily step down with immediate effect. Both Mr Adnams and Mr Sharp say they will leave before the next AGM but the board has overseen their re-election for three years. Shameful to have got to this position!”
In February the company announced it had appointed the restructuring consultants Alvarez & Marsal to look at raising additional capital from a third party or the sale of freehold assets to help pay down the company’s net debt of £15.9m.
The company claimed that it had “made progress” in its review of options to fund its future growth plans, with interest secured from “multiple parties”. It said that a board committee was evaluating “indicative and non-binding” proposals to determine which route offered the best long-term value.
Adnams said sales, margin and profit for the five months to the end of May all remained in line with its forecast, during which time it had continued to outperform the market in beer volumes and sales.
The company has also just appointed a new chief executive following Andy Wood’s decision to step down at the end of June after 13 years in the top job. He will be replaced by Jenny Hanlon, the company’s chief financial officer.
