Report: SEC to review shareholder proposals after Whole Foods fight

Washington, D.C. – The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will reportedly review a rule that allowed Whole Foods Market Inc. to block a shareholder proposal regarding director nominations. According to Bloomberg, the SEC said it will take another look at a regulation that lets public companies block proposals from shareholders if the company offers a similar proposal.



In December, Whole Foods used this rule to prevent a proposal from a shareholder to let any investor who owns 3% or more of the company’s stock for three years to nominate candidates for the board of directors. Whole Foods instead enacted a proposal that lets any investor who owns 9% or more of the company’s stock for five years nominate a director.



Currently, no Whole Foods investor owns more than 6% of the company’s stock. The SEC’s decision means that at least for the time being, it has no opinion on whether Whole Foods can block the shareholder’s proposal.