Voting. You get to do it if you own common stock. And the votes are kind of unitary, meaning that you basically get one "say" in things, which comes in the form of electing the board of directors. It's the common, not the preferred or the bondholders or big vendors or partners who elect the board, nor is it dead people in Chicago.
Yes, there are proxy votes with major initiatives that common shareholders vote on. But usually, the board aligns one way or another with those votes, and shareholders just line up behind them like lemmings to a slaughter, and vote whichever way the board tells them to vote.
Some companies have super-voting stock, shares which carry multiple votes per share, but also have the identical economic ownership stake in the company.
See: Super-Voting Stock if you care.
Related or Semi-related Video
Finance: What is a proxy?8 Views
Finance a la Shmoop. What is a proxy? Well it's kind of an approx-i-mate. As in, it's
not exactly the way dogs mate. Not all of them try to text their goodies to each
other. In the land of Finance, a proxy is simply a substitute.
Someone's vote, for example, can be given to another party, who then acts on behalf
of the person, who was going to vote in the first place. But really couldn't care [coffee drive-thru]
less about the outcome, so she went to Dunkin Donuts instead. That's how
most votes are taken in public companies. Proxies are sent out to shareholders, who
then designate their wishes, to then be submitted to an individual, physically
present at the vote, who then you know votes and that's it.
We'll leave you with final warning. Beware of any incoming texts you may get
from a German Shepherd. [Phone with dog text]
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