When most investors buy shares in a company, they’re doing it to take advantage of future stock returns or because they believe in the company or its products.
But one of the lesser-known benefits of being a shareholder is the perks you can receive just for owning stock in a company. Not all publicly traded companies offer shareholder perks, but there are a handful that do, and some are pretty generous.
To help you track down the companies who give their shareholders a little something extra, here are 23 of the best stock shareholder perks we could find. You may already be entitled to perks and not even know it.
Table of Contents
- 1. Berkshire Hathaway (BRK)
- 2. Ford (F)
- 3. AMC (AMC)
- 4. 3M (MMM)
- 5. Rakuten (RKUNY)
- 6. Kimberly-Clark (KMB)
- 7. Churchill Downs (CHDN)
- 8. Lindt (CHLSY)
- 9. LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE (LVMU)
- 10. Crimson Wine Group (CWGL)
- 11. Whirlpool (WHR)
- 12. iRobot (IRBT)
- 13. WeWork (WE)
- 14. Vista Outdoor (VSTO)
- 15. SmileDirectClub (SDC)
- 16. Bloomsbury Publishing (BMY)
- 17. Carnival Cruise Lines (CCL)
- 18. Intercontinental Hotels Group (IHG)
- 19. Royal Caribbean Cruises (RCL)
- 20. Norwegian Cruise Lines (NCLH)
- 21. Online Vacation Center (ONVC)
- 22. Accor SA (ACCYY)
- 23. Aterian (ATER)
- Final Thoughts
1. Berkshire Hathaway (BRK)
Berkshire Hathaway offers shareholder discounts at their annual shareholder’s festival, held each spring in Omaha, Nebraska. These include discounts at the Nebraska Furniture Mart (NFM), Borsheims, and The Bookworm.
The Berkshire Hathaway annual shareholder’s meeting is one of the biggest annual events hosted by a publicly listed company. There are no specific requirements to qualify for the discounts other than to be a shareholder.
2. Ford (F)
Ford offered a discount program on select new Ford car models to shareholders who own at least 100 shares of stock in the company. The program ended in 2022, but if you are a Ford shareholder – or plan to be in the future – keep your eyes and ears open for a return of the perk.
3. AMC (AMC)
AMC offers shareholder perks through its AMC Investor Connect program. If you are a current stockholder, the company will send you special offers. Those will include a free 32-ounce ICEE, as well as an opportunity to upgrade to AMC Stubs Premiere or A-List for even more perks.
4. 3M (MMM)
3M has a history of sending out shareholder gift boxes. Once a year, shareholders have an opportunity to purchase a gift box with products made by the company and associated brands worth as much as $80. The gift box can be purchased for $27, which translates into $53 worth of free merchandise.
5. Rakuten (RKUNY)
Rakuten offers Rakuten Cash for its shareholders who own at least 100 shares of stock as of December 31 each year. There’s a sliding scale on how much cash you can receive, based on a minimum number of shares at 100, to the maximum benefit for those with over 10,000 shares.
There’s also a time factor, with different payouts for those who have been shareholders for greater than five years. Other perks may be added as well, including Rakuten Music, Rakuten Magazine, and NBA Rakuten League Pass (free for three months).
6. Kimberly-Clark (KMB)
Kimberly-Clark has a history of offering gift boxes to its shareholders; however, the program seems to have ended in 2022. Stay tuned to see if the company reintroduces the perk.
The gift box contained an assortment of Kimberly-Clark products that can be purchased for well below their retail cost.
7. Churchill Downs (CHDN)
Churchill Downs is the parent company of the world-famous Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky, as well as other racetracks around the country. The company offers its Shareholder Pass Program, or at least it did until 2017. It offered shareholders free admission to company racetracks.
Though it’s always possible the company will reinstate the program, this one looks like it may be gone forever. Or maybe not… If you’re already a shareholder, check in with investor relations for updates from time to time.
8. Lindt (CHLSY)
Switzerland-based Lindt – the official name of the company is long and difficult to pronounce – is a chocolate-making conglomerate that includes other popular brands, like Ghirardelli and Russell Stover. They offer a sweet perk, but there’s a catch.
Lindt will provide a chocolate gift box to any shareholder who attends their annual shareholder’s meeting. But the meeting is held in Switzerland, making it a bit impractical for all but the largest shareholders to attend.
9. LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE (LVMU)
LVMH is a Paris, France-based provider of luxury goods. They offer membership in the Shareholder’s Club as a shareholder perk. According to the company, club membership is “tailored to individual shareholders who show a special interest in what is happening at the group, (the Club) gives its members a better understanding of LVMH, its businesses, and its brands.”
Membership benefits include visits to exceptional sites, from Hennessy’s centuries-old cellars to the magnificent crayeres at Veuve Clicquot, and more. However, they don’t indicate the specific requirements shareholders must meet to qualify.
10. Crimson Wine Group (CWGL)
Crimson Wine Group provides shareholders with 20% off select wines, as well as two complimentary tastings at any of their tasting rooms. Their various wine brands include Pine Ridge Vineyards, Seghesio Family Vineyards, Archery Summit Winery, Chamisal Vineyards, Seven Hills Winery, Malene, and Double Canyon. All are US-based brands.
11. Whirlpool (WHR)
Though we haven’t been able to verify the program specifically, Whirlpool reportedly offers discounts of up to 30% on merchandise from company brands of home appliances. These include KitchenAid, everydrop, Maytag, Amana, Gladiator, affresh, and of course, Whirlpool products themselves.
One of the advantages of the discount is that you can qualify if you own only a single share of stock.
12. iRobot (IRBT)
iRobot reportedly offers at least two different discount plans for shareholders. Under the first, you can save as much as $50 on select products if you have owned at least one share of stock for at least 12 weeks.
But if you own at least 500 shares, you’ll be eligible for up to $90 in discounts on select merchandise.
13. WeWork (WE)
WeWork has become big in recent years as a provider of coworking spaces, including physical and virtual shared spaces. The company has partnered with Stockperks to offer its shareholders flexible office space perks. Shareholders will receive three complementary workspace day passes to hundreds of WeWork On Demand locations in major cities around the world.
To be eligible, you must own at least one share of stock in the company. Available locations are primarily in the US and Canada.
14. Vista Outdoor (VSTO)
Vista Outdoor is a manufacturer of outdoor sports and recreation equipment. The company is offering shareholder rewards from the company’s portfolio of brands.
For example, you may be eligible for a 20% discount on purchases at Camelbak, 40% off merchandise and accessories from CCI, Federal, Remington, and Speer, 25% off Quietkat Pioneer & Jeep E-bikes and accessories, and 20% off through Blackhawk and Bushnell.
That’s a lot of generous discounts on a wide variety of sports and recreation providers! The company does not indicate shareholder requirements for participation.
15. SmileDirectClub (SDC)
Teledentistry provider SmileDirect Club offers shareholder discounts on aligners, retainers, and oral care products. You’ll need to download the Stockperks app on either Google Play or The App Store to participate. The company does not indicate the dollar value or percentage of the discounts, nor do they disclose shareholder requirements.
16. Bloomsbury Publishing (BMY)
UK-based Bloomsbury Publishing is a global publishing company. If you own one or more shares of company stock, you’ll be eligible for a special discount of 35% off all books published by Bloomsbury.
But at a current share price of $403, you probably won’t want to purchase the stock just to get a discount on a handful of books.
17. Carnival Cruise Lines (CCL)
Carnival Cruise Lines is currently providing stateroom credits to owners of at least 100 shares of company stock. The amount of the credit varies by the length of stay and the destination.
The company publishes the following schedule of stateroom credits:
If that screenshot is hard to see, here it is recreated:
| North America Brands |
Continental Europe Brands |
United Kingdom Brands | Australia Brands |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Onboard credit per stateroom on sailings of 14 days or longer |
US $250 | €200 | £150 | A$250 |
| Onboard credit per stateroom on sailings of 7 – 13 days |
US $100 | €75 | £60 | A$100 |
| Onboard credit per stateroom on sailings of 6 days or less |
US $50 | €40 | £30 | A$50 |
18. Intercontinental Hotels Group (IHG)
Intercontinental Hotels Group offers discounts to its shareholders – reportedly worth up to 15% – at company properties, based on availability. The requirements to qualify are pretty specific. For example, you must be an ordinary shareholder holding your shares in certified form, in your sole name, with the Company Registrar. The discount is available through a dedicated control access website, with details provided in company mailings to shareholders.
The IHG chain includes Crown Plaza, Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express, and Staybridge Suites, along with several other hotel brands.
19. Royal Caribbean Cruises (RCL)
Royal Caribbean Cruises offers a stateroom credit to its shareholders, similar to Carnival Cruise Lines. If you own at least 100 shares of stock in the company, then you will be eligible for the following credits:
20. Norwegian Cruise Lines (NCLH)
If you own at least 100 shares of Norwegian Cruise Lines stock, you’ll be eligible for a $250 on-board credit per stateroom on sailings of 15 days or more, $100 for 7 to 14 days, and $50 for six days or less.
21. Online Vacation Center (ONVC)
Online Vacation Center is an online travel agency specializing in cruises and hotel bookings. The company is currently offering shareholders and their referrals 5% cash back rewards on each cruise purchased through the company.
To be eligible for the cash back, you must own a minimum of 500 shares of company stock (currently trading at $0.75 per share).
22. Accor SA (ACCYY)
Accor SA is a French multinational hospitality company. It owns, manages, and franchises hotels, resorts, and vacation properties at 5,300 locations in more than 110 countries. It’s the largest hospitality company in Europe and the sixth largest in the world.
As a company shareholder, you can join the Accor Shareholder Club. That entitles you to an A ALL Gold loyalty card, enabling you to enjoy VIP status and exclusive benefits. You’ll need to stay a minimum of 30 nights at a company hotel each year, worth 7,000 bonus points.
23. Aterian (ATER)
Aterian provides multiple product categories, including home appliances, kitchen wares, and essential oils. In fact, the company offers more than 2,000 products.
The company provides its shareholders with “exclusive benefits, discounts, and early access to new products.” However, they provide no details as to exactly what those perks are, nor do they specify a dollar value of the shareholder perks.
Final Thoughts
As you can see, the list of shareholder perks is pretty diverse across the companies on our list. It’s interesting to see how the perks range in estimated dollar value, too. From a free 32-ounce ICEE and boxes of chocolates to cruise ship credits and free passes to co-working spaces.
While some of the stocks on our list have stopped issuing shareholder perks, it’s a good idea to check in from time to time if you’re a shareholder, as they may resume the perks in the future.
Keep in mind that in most cases, it’s not worth owning stock in a company for the shareholder’s perks alone. But they are a nice added benefit if you already own stock in a company and see it as an otherwise promising investment.