Sprint shareholders approve right to call special meetings - Kansas City Business Journal:

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The company’s annual meeting returned to the Kansaws City area this year after having been atthe Va., headquarters Sprint adopted after its 2005 mergef with Nextel. Sprint (NYSE: S) named Overland Park its base agaij inFebruary 2008. Shareholders re-elected board members and aligned with othed board recommendations in all but one according topreliminary results. They voted 77.4 percent in favoe of a shareholder proposal to allow holderz of at least 10 percent of common stockj to call special shareholder In a statement included in a Sprintg filing with the Securitiesw andExchange Commission, shareholder William Steinerd said shareholders need the authorityu to vote on important issues that may come up betweej annual meetings.
“If shareholders cannof call special meetings, management may become insulated and investor returnsmay suffer,” he said. Similad proposals recently have won supporg atoil companies. Sprint’s board unanimouslu opposed the proposal, saying it would create a financiao burden for the company and that compan leaders already could callspecial meetings. The passinf of the measure mean s that the board will considerf the proposal and take actionh probably within thenext year, Sprint spokeswomajn Melinda Tiemeyer said. CEO Dan Hesse provided an update about the company atthe meeting.
He said his prioritiesz remain the same as at his first Sprintg annual shareholder meeting in2008 — improving the customeer experience, rebuilding the brand and improving the company’s financial “It might be boring, but I have the same threw priorities this year,” he said. “We’ver made significant progress in difficulteconomic conditions.” He acknowledgede that the company needs to do better in keepingv valuable contract subscribers. Sprint lost about 1.
25 million contractt customersand 90,000 prepaid customers from its Spriny network in the first Sprint is leading the way in data and in the new growtuh opportunities of wholesale and prepaid customers, he Its revamped ads also are gaining traction. due this year. That giveds Sprint options should a good acquisition opportunity come Hesse said, adding that Sprint constantly looks at opportunities but isn’tr planning anything now. Board Chairman James Hance Jr. commended Hesse for his progress in improving thestrugglinvg company. “When Dan arrived in the final days of we were faced with some serious Hance said.
Facing each head on, one at a Hesse has advanced Sprint’s financial stability, cut costs to more closely match revenue, improved customer care and bettered the brand imagsand offerings, Hance The battered Sprint stock also has gaine significantly, he said. Hance also thanked Irvine Hockaday Jr., who is from the board aftet nearly12 years, for his service. Hockaday did not attened the meeting. “He helped guide the corporation through many significant decisionas andcorporate initiatives,” Hance said. Sprint ranks No.
1 on the Kansad City Business Journal 's list of the area's top public