Meetings

At the annual stockholders' meeting of the world's largest motormaker last week in Wilmington, Del. there were not enough chairs to go round. It was not that General Motors' 342,384 stockholders had turned out to rule their company, but that in the room, on the seventh floor of the Du Pont Building, there were but 20 chairs at meeting time. Presiding was heavyset, florid John Thomas Smith, GM vice president and general counsel. Absent were President Alfred Pritchard Sloan Jr. and 30 other directors.

Until nominations for directors were called for, the meeting was perfunctory. Then a serious-faced, bespectacled young man named Howard 0. Hatcher nominated President Homer Martin of the United Automobile Workers. Several staring stockholders snickered. One asked: "Is this a joke, or what?" Replied Chairman Smith: "No, it's meant seriously." Leaning back in his chair, Mr. Hatcher, who is research secretary for the Council for Social Action of the Congregational and Christian Churches, explained: "Since Mr. Martin has shown considerable interest in and understanding of General Motors . . . it might be a good policy to have Organized Labor represented on boards of directors." When ballots were counted, Homer Martin got only five votes.

Voting 193 shares against the management's slate of directors, but not for Mr. Martin, was John J. Gilbert of Manhattan, younger brother of Lewis D. Gilbert, the nation's "No. 1 Minority Stockholder."

Denied was his request to see minutes of directors' meetings.

From Manhattan President Sloan issued GM's first quarter financial report showing the effect on earnings of the 42-day strike engineered by Homer Martin's U.A.W. Net profits for the first three months of 1937 were $44,814,000, a 15% decrease from the $52,464,000 earned during the same period last year. Net sales were substantially equaled: $336,850,000 in 1937 as compared with $341,306,000. At week's end, GM directors met in Manhattan, elected President Sloan their chairman, vice Lammot du Pont, retired. President Sloan's old job fell to General Manager William S. Knudsen.

In hard times, workers lie low, stock-holders raise Ned about dividends. In good times, workers raise Ned, stockholders behave. Consequently, while U. S. Industry was still confronted with strikes (see p. 16) during this year's spring meetings, stockholders were generally good-tempered, directors were concerned with dividends and continued good times.

P:When Chrysler directors met in Manhattan last week they received from President K. T. Keller the corporation's first quarter report showing a 56% increase in the sale of Chrysler cars over last year despite interruption of operations during a five-week strike. Net sales were $183,207,000, compared with $148,464,000 during the first quarter of 1936. Net profits, however, decreased from $11,453,000 to $10,914.000. These figures studied, Chrysler directors upped the quarterly dividend rate from $1.50 to $2.

P:In American Telephone & Telegraph Co.'s Manhattan offices at No. 195 Broadway fortnight ago, file clerks checked & counted proxies in preparation for the annual meeting of the world's biggest private enterprise. One proxy was sent to the office of President Walter Sherman Gifford. Smiling, he read: "Don't let them get you mad, Mr. Gifford." As things turned out, there was little for suave Mr. Gifford to be upset about when he faced 250 A. T. & T. stockholders at the meeting. The older member of the ubiquitous Gilbert family--Lewis--was on hand to ask an embarrassing question about Federal Communications Commission revelations of high rates for equipment charged by A. T. & T.'s manufacturing subsidiary, Western Electric Co., but Mr. Gifford parried: "The rates . .. have been reviewed by the courts for years and approved."

P:Because Chairman Myron Charles Taylor of U. S. Steel expressed "a tremendous ambition" to see all common stockholders rewarded for their patience when he addressed the company's annual meeting last month, Wall Street financial circles last week half-expected Big Steel directors to dip into surplus enough to pay off preferred dividend arrearage, thus pave the way tor a resumption on common. Since the corporation earned $28,561,000 for the first quarter of 1937, it ,would have taken $11,000,000 more to clear up the $9.25 per share arrearage plus $1.75 per share current requirements on 3,602,811 shares. This the directors did not do, voting instead to pay off $4 per share on accumulations and the regular $1.75, adding $7,845,000 to surplus. His work up-to-date Chairman Taylor & Mrs. Taylor ailed for Europe and the Coronation.

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.