i think shareholders have to be educated!!I have been investing in stock for 8 years..I attended my first AGM today for KCB and was surprised by some shareholders demands....if KCB shares earnings per share was sh1.84, how does a sober investor expect a dividend of sh 3 and above???that was the demand of one shareholder. I remember watching a similar demand at Safaricoms AGM last year...a shareholder wanted a dividend of sh 1 per share and yet earnings per share was something to the tune of sh0.25....Wazua aren't these demands ridiculous. Do these shareholders understand business.. Do they want their companies to pay them what they have not made...or maybe borrow to pay dividend...what kind of business is this....quite ridiculous...Wazua sema...

As much as that is, I understand the shareholders' frustration especially the new ones who joined through SCOM IPO. How do you tell a guy that dividend from his/her investment after 12 months is equal to two phone calls?

I have 14 counters in the NSE and i want to add Carbacid to my portfolio this year. However, i never attend the AGMs because of; (i) Busy schedule (ii) Disorder as a result of shareholders who go the AGMs to collect freebies and lunch-boxes. I remember watching on TV one Mr. Chami complaining to Safaricom directors why they have not provided food to the attendees.

But looking at it from a different angle, it makes a lot of sense to some shareholders.... A branded polo shirt, a cap, bag and a lunch box etc etc is much more than the dividend they receive. So, it is not out of the blues that a shareholder will demand a dividend of Ksh 1 BOB WHEN THE EPS was Ksh 0.25, because attending the AGM is for a completely different purpose. However, attending a Pan Africa Insurance Holdings AGM is a different experience all together.

On the freebies, who are most generous? Why buy umbrellas when you can just walk into the kicc for bbk agm over lunch and walk out with one?

I used to go for AGMs but I hardly do so unless I have a 'larger' holding...

Silly (or ignorant) questions:
- Will you hire my kid/s?
- Can I get bus fare?
- I came all the way from ___ for the AGM. I need money for accomodation
- Why don't we have the AGM before lunch so we can have lunch?

some fellows saw people leaving the BBK agm with freebies and they wanted to get in for a piece of the action, ati because they had BBK atm cards.

It is not necessarily bad as it puts pressure on the directors to deliver more earnings. I'm sure next year Muthoka will ensure that he is able to pay the dividend demanded so as not to face the wrath of irate Chamis' of the world.

It seems this is a reflection of most of AGMs...it was kind of a waste of time...and the funniest bit is that the loudest speakers are the poorest in financial literacy....bure kabisa!!!!

I attended th Pan Africa AGM last year. The polo shirts were of a high quality it is a pity they were white which I don't like very much. There were less than 100 of us in that room and you would have thought that it was a meeting of the Actuarial Society. Simba really had to be sharp to be on the ball.