Atlanta, GA, May 30--Home Depot will hold its annual meeting in Chicago, the first time in its history the gathering will take place outside metro Atlanta, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
The new location is part of a strategy to take the meeting to areas where Home Depot has a major presence, the company said.
The official reason aside, some shareholders said Home Depot did it to avoid criticism for its poor performance in 2002, when the company's stock ranked as the worst performer on the Dow Jones industrial average.
That prompted many shareholders last year to question the major changes made by Bob Nardelli, chairman, chief executive and
president of Home Depot.
"They (moved the meeting) to get out of Atlanta," said Mike Teichner, a shareholder since 1985. Recently retired, he and his wife planned to make the trip from the San Diego area. Teichner said they're going in hope of finding out why customer service has slipped so much at Home Depot.
"I place it all on (Nardelli)," he said.
Some of the meeting's action items also could stir controversy, especially the re-election of directors. All 12 board members face re-election each year.
Two board members have come under fire recently, including lead director and co-founder Ken Langone. The National Association of Securities Dealers has charged Invemed Associates, an investment bank headed by Langone, with inflating commissions and unlawful trading during initial public offerings of stock in 1999 and 2000.
Home Depot has issued a statement saying it has no basis for commenting on the charges because the company is not directly involved with NASD's actions against Invemed.
Home Depot director Richard Grasso also has come under scrutiny recently. Corporate governance experts have questioned whether Grasso, who serves as chairman of the New York Stock Exchange, should serve on the board of a company such as Home Depot, which trades on the stock exchange he oversees.
When Grasso was named to the Home Depot board in February 2002, it was established that he would recuse himself from participating in discussions in which he had overlapping interests, the company said.
One shareholder resolution to be voted on would recommend that the board adopt a term limit of six years for future outside directors.
The company said it opposes the proposal from shareholder Evelyn Y. Davis of Washington because it benefits from having experienced board members who understand its business.
As for Chicago, Home Depot has greatly increased its presence in the city this year alone. Last month, it opened four stores in the metro area, including an "urban format" store in Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood.
The 80,000-square-foot store is Home Depot's first two-level outlet. Nardelli and co-founder Bernie Marcus were expected to make their first visits to the Lincoln Park store during their time at the annual meeting.
