The California Public Employees' Retirement System, the largest U.S. public pension fund, has compiled its 15th annual Focus List, calling out 11 companies as underachievers. Some household names made the list, such as Dollar Tree Stores Inc., Sara Lee Corp., and Eli Lilly & Co., as well as some lesser known companies such as Corinthian Colleges Inc., and Sanmina-SCI Corp. — perhaps because they are headquartered in California. One of the notable names on the list is embroiled in a messy restructuring: Tribune Co. However, most are not exactly "troubled" companies on the verge of bankruptcy. They are "troubled" in the sense that they have subpar earnings and undemocratic corporate governance policies, according to the pension fund.
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