American International Group Inc. (NYSE:AIG) will be
releasing its third-quarter performance numbers on Friday, but it will not be participating in a question and answer session with analysts and shareholders as most other major public firms do. Why? Because for the second straight quarter, the company has opted
not to host a conference call.
"We will provide ample information on our financial results on Friday, and we will be happy to answer questions on our results once they are public," Christina Pretto, a spokeswoman for AIG,
told Bloomberg in an e-mail. "We are in daily contact with our majority shareholder."
But with $182.3 billion in bailout capital propping up the insurance giant, AIG's largest shareholder is, well, the American taxpayer. It should also be noted that other bailout recipients, including Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) and Bank of America Corp. (NYSE:BAC), still hold conference calls and Web casts, in addition to posting earnings information on their Web sites.
Granted, earnings calls are usually uneventful. But in this particular case, the absence of a conversation can be construed as fear on the part of AIG to be presented with questions it has no good answers to, or even to give outspoken CEO Robert Benmosche an easy outlet to air his quips.
So what is it AIG? You chicken? -
Sara BehunekSee Also:
AIG's third-quarter earnings preview
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