Update on Universal Owners

Thestreet.com's mutual fund columnist, Brett Arends, has an interesting (and strident) take today on the Home Depot controversy. 

"...[T]he people who should be right at the center of the scandal aren't the executives who are taking the loot or even the directors who gave it to them. It's the managers of some of America's biggest mutual funds, including Vanguard and Fidelity. Instead, so far, they're getting a pass."

That's the first time I've seen that said in the business media, although this criticism has been circulating in academia for some time.  In their excellent book, The Rise of Fiduciary Capitalism, Hawley and Williams warn of a society in which owners are separated from the companies they own by chains of agents (fund managers, directors, etc.), who ultimately do not do a good job of representing their interests.  That's what Arends sees going on at Home Depot:

"Bob Nardelli didn't really do anything wrong. He just asked for, and received, a massive amount of money. Wouldn't you?

"The problem lies with those on the other side of the trade -- the people hiring the executives. The people who are involved in the negotiations, namely the directors, aren't particularly motivated. They don't get paid very much, at least by heavy-hitter standards. And it isn't their money that's involved. No wonder they just outsource the calculations to "consultants" whose biggest interest is in keeping the executive class happy.

"Meanwhile, the people who are motivated to get the best price, namely the shareholders, aren't really involved. Which is why attention should turn to those who are supposed to represent them. Mutual fund managers have a fiduciary responsibility to their investors. "

It's an interesting article.  Did you know Fidelity voted against half of the stock option compensation plans that came up for a vote last year?  I sure didn't.

Hawley and Williams' site has much more on the universal owner concept.