Nissan shareholders review recovery plan as losses continue
Investors at Nissan’s Yokohama AGM approved Ivan Espinosa and 10 other directors but blocked Motoo Nagai as losses, dividends and the share price drew criticism.
- Shareholders expressed strong dissatisfaction with Nissan's recovery plan due to a second consecutive year of large net losses, a weak share price, and a lack of dividends.
- As part of its turnaround strategy, Nissan is reviewing its investments in electric vehicles and shifting its focus to more popular hybrid models.
- In a show of discontent, shareholders rejected the reappointment of one board member and criticized CEO Ivan Espinosa's management capabilities.
Nissan Motor Co shareholders voiced strong dissatisfaction at the Japanese carmaker’s annual general meeting on Tuesday, 23 June, as sluggish earnings and a weak share price continued to overshadow restructuring efforts under new management.
The meeting, held at Nissan’s headquarters in Yokohama, south of Tokyo, considered the appointment of 12 directors, including president and chief executive Ivan Espinosa.
Shareholders approved 11 nominees, including Espinosa, but rejected the reappointment of Motoo Nagai, who formerly worked at Mizuho Financial Group Inc, Nissan’s main bank, amid doubts over his independence.
Espinosa, who voluntarily returned part of his executive compensation, opened the meeting by saying Nissan had focused on implementing its business revitalisation plan and had made “steady progress” despite continuing uncertainties.
He also indicated that the company would release a medium-term management plan in the second half of fiscal 2026.
Shareholders nevertheless criticised management over the steep fall in Nissan’s share price and questioned Espinosa’s management capabilities.
Before the meeting, a shareholder in his 70s told Jiji Press that the stock had become “too low to sell”, complaining that shareholders had received no dividends in recent years while company executives had still received compensation.
Nissan remains in a difficult management environment, partly because of additional tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump’s administration and weak sales in Japan and overseas.
For fiscal 2025, which ended in March, the company posted a large annual net loss for the second consecutive year.
In pursuit of a turnaround, Nissan is reviewing its investments in electric vehicles and shifting its focus towards hybrid vehicles, which are becoming popular in the United States.
[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]
