Ralph Nader, who is mostly known as a consumer advocate and presidential candidate, has asked John Chambers, Cisco's (Nasdaq: CSCO) CEO, to put together a special dividend and raise the current one.
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"My sense is that you really do not resonate with your shareholders who trusted you and relied on you," Nader said in a statement. "Give them the dividend respect their continuity with you deserves."
Nader wants Chambers to take part of the company's $38.9 million in cash and short-term investments to double its 24 cents a year dividend and issue a one-time $1 a share dividend.
Although Chambers has been taking drastic measures to realign the company, including wide-scale layoffs, investors remain apprehensive about the company's long-term revenue forecast of 5 to 7 percent, down from its previous 12-17 percent forecast.
"We engage with our shareholders consistently and value their input," said Karen Tillman, a spokeswoman for San Jose, Calif.-based Cisco. "We have moved aggressively and decisively with our action plan to deliver profitable growth and we continue to evaluate optimal use of capital, with a clear focus on providing consistent, meaningful return to shareholders."
Nader said that if Cisco does not make the one-time dividend and increase by the end of October, he said he will ask other shareholders to put aside a penny for each share they own so they can hire a "watchdog" to oversee the vendor's actions. Potential candidates for the watchdog role could be either a public interest lawyer or an "out-of-work investigative journalist."
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