The shareholder value myth : how putting shareholders first harms investors, corporations, and the public
Summary
Executives, investors, and the business press routinely chant the mantra that corporations are required to "maximize shareholder value." In this pathbreaking book, renowned corporate expert Lynn Stout debunks the myth that corporate law mandates shareholder primacy. Stout shows how shareholder value... Full description
- Introduction: "the dumbest idea in the world"
- Part I:
- Debunking the shareholder value myth.
- The rise of shareholder value thinking
- How shareholder primacy gets corporate law wrong
- How shareholder primacy gets corporate economics wrong
- How shareholder primacy gets the empirical evidence wrong
- Part II.
- What do shareholders really value?
- Short-term speculators versus long-term investors
- Keeping promises to build successful companies
- Hedge funds versus universal investors
- Making room for shareholder conscience
- Conclusion: "slaves of some defunct economist."