That one thing is the new concept of the “Virtual Annual Shareholder Meeting”, now required by most companies, as their local rules forbid large gatherings.  In the past, I could only attend the annual meeting of one of the companies whose stock I own, and that company is headquartered in my area.  I thoroughly enjoyed attending the Costco annual meeting, since the company always introduced new products and services there, and handed out free food items (now, who could resist a free bag of cashews?).

Last year, and now this year, most companies are having their annual meetings online, and I can now attend more of them.  In the next three weeks, I will be logging into three shareholder meetings that I have never attended before.  I think it will be a great experience to hear the voices and meet the company officers, and listen to the explain what their companies have been doing over the past year.  The one I really wanted to attend, the company was bought out, and they are no longer independent.  Rats!  I really wanted to attend a Tiffany annual meeting one day.  I’m guessing that the virtual meetings will be better-attended than the in-person ones, because people can participate from their own desks at home or at work.

In any case, I’m looking forward to the three meetings, and hope to come away with a better understanding of all three businesses.