It is amazing how the majority of the news can be positive for a company, but one negative story can really pull it down. It can have an even more profound impact when that news event highlights the difficulties the company has already been facing. Alcatel-Lucent (ALU) has found itself facing one of these bad events, and it seems unlikely that the more minor positive stories can make up for it. The struggles revolve around the hostility that came out at the shareholder meeting. Alcatel-Lucent is struggling in the aftermath of this event, but it may have bigger things in store for its future that could offset this news.

Shareholders have begun to express concern over what they consider to be mismanagement of the company. Alcatel-Lucent has shown promise in turning things around, but Chief Executive Ben Verwaayen had to postpone his expected deadline for “taking the company to a break-even cash flow.” Recently, at the annual shareholder meeting, speeches were interrupted, and the general atmosphere was quite hostile. Verwaayen recognizes that the company has made improvements, but that these have not been substantial enough. This bad press will harm the company’s reputation even further. Shareholders seem to have little confidence in the company, and this may translate to drops in the stock.

At the same time, the company has been building a better reputation. In today’s world, going green is becoming increasingly important. Alcatel-Lucent has recently made the news for reducing its carbon footprint by 22% since 2008.To continue reading, click here.