Harley-Davidson (HOG) said Wednesday it "strongly disagrees" with the recommendations of proxy advisory firms Glass Lewis & Co. and Egan-Jones Ratings to reject its three director candidates.
The reports from the proxy advisory firms fail to recognize the company's progress under its Hardwire strategic plan, Harley-Davidson said in a statement.
The company also said that removing two independent directors who have "knowledge critical in selecting the strongest CEO candidate" and the outgoing CEO would introduce "significant risk" and "jeopardize shareholder value."
Regarding H Partners' campaign urging shareholders to reject the re-election of chairman and CEO Jochen Zeitz, as well as directors Thomas Linebarger and Sara Levinson, the company said the activist investor has "offered no constructive solutions."
H Partners said late Tuesday it was pleased that Glass Lewis and Egan-Jones "saw through Harley's attempts to distract shareholders from its abysmal performance and egregious governance failures."
HOG shares were down 1.5% in recent trading.
Price: 22.95, Change: -0.36, Percent Change: -1.54
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