
Artisan has approximately 3,000 shareholders, in their own name, together with shareholders with holdings in nominee accounts. There are also a number of market makers with relatively modest holdings.
The largest shareholder is Aspen Finance (Michael Stevens – Chairman) with 9,268,721 Ordinary shares of 20p each representing 69.47% as at 16 April 2010. Other Directors hold a total of 25,950 Ordinary shares of 20p each representing 0.19% of the issued share capital.
Artisan (UK) plc currently holds 14,592 Ordinary shares of 20p as treasury stock. Treasury stock are non-voting shares. There is no other non-voting stock. The Directors therefore control 69.74% of the voting stock.
Other large shareholdings as at 16 April 2010:
Pershing Nominees
Limited 2.57%
T.D Waterhouse Nominees Europe Limited 1.87%
HSBC Global Custody Nominee (UK) Ltd
1.65%
Barclayshare Nominees
Limited 1.60%
Hargreaves Lansdown
(Nominees)
1.13%
Kilcourt
Investments 1.12%
The Board wishes to keep shareholders aware of events happening in Artisan and they are encouraged to use this web site.
If a shareholder wishes to know more about the Company and what it is doing, and you cannot find the answer on this site, then you are welcome to e-mail or, if you prefer, write in with your questions. Please state your name, reply address, and preferably shareholding, on your question. The Directors cannot undertake to be always available to answer telephone calls, but will endeavour to respond to shareholders on a timely basis.
What will happen to your question? Questions will generally be referred to the Chief Executive or another director as appropriate. Your question will be acknowledged and we will endeavour to reply within 10 days, but this is not always possible. Please follow up if your question remains unanswered.
Naturally, certain topics will attract more than one similar question, therefore a frequently asked questions page (FAQ's) is included on the site. Please refer to this before asking your question, as the answer may already have been published in response to another shareholder. This page is updated monthly, although some “evergreen” questions may be left on the site.
Please remember that there are very strict Stock Exchange guidelines on communications from Directors on “price-sensitive” issues, including anything which may be deemed to represent a forecast. At certain times of the year, the Company entered prescribed “close periods” and may say even less than normal. These are, of course, often the very issues shareholders are most keen to learn about but we must operate within the relevant legislation and Stock Exchange rules.
Warning to Shareholders
In recent years many companies have become aware that their shareholders have received unsolicited phone calls or correspondence concerning investment matters. These are typically from overseas based 'brokers' who target UK shareholders offering to sell them what often turn out to be worthless or high risk shares in US or UK investments. They can be very persistent and extremely persuasive and a 2006 survey by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) has reported that the average amount lost by investors is around £20,000. There are also schemes which entice shareholders by offering them unexpectedly high values for their shareholdings. It is not just the novice investor that has been duped in this way; many of the victims had been successfully investing for several years. Shareholders are advised to be very wary of any unsolicited advice, offers to buy shares at a discount or offers of free reports into the company. The FSA summarises its advice at the following link www.moneymadeclear.fsa.gov.uk/News/Scams/Share_Scams.html.
If you receive any unsolicited investment advice:-
Details of any sharedealing facilities that the Company endorses will be included in company mailings.
More detailed information on this or similar activity can be found on the FSA website www.moneymadeclear.fsa.gov.uk/.