LONDON (Reuters) - Another top-10 Unilever (L:ULVR) (AS:UNc) shareholder declared its opposition to the group's proposal to base a new single headquarters in the Netherlands, becoming the fifth big investor to publicly criticize the board's plan.
Legal & General Investment Management, one of Europe's largest asset managers, on Friday said it intended to vote against Unilever's proposed move next month.
"We understand Unilever has explored a number of alternatives in reaching its final decision. However, we do not believe Unilever has made a compelling case for many PLC shareholders to support the recommendation in favor of Dutch incorporation," Sacha Sadan, director of corporate governance at LGIM, said in a statement.
LGIM is the sixth-biggest shareholder in Unilever PLC, with a 1.98 percent stake, according to Reuters data. The group has total assets of 984.8 billion pounds ($1.28 trillion) under management.
It follows Lindsell Train, Columbia Threadneedle, M&G Investment Management and Aviva (LON:AV) Investors Global Services in voicing dissatisfaction with the proposal. Together, the five investors control 7.41 percent of Unilever's UK-listed shares.
In order for the proposal to pass, it needs approval from a majority of shareholders, who control at least 75 percent of the UK shares. It only needs approval from 50 percent of the Dutch shares.
Earlier this week, the maker of Ben & Jerry's ice cream and Dove soap launched a media charm offensive aimed at bringing shareholders on side.($1 = 0.7692 pounds)