Walt Disney (Disney) secured a landslide victory in the proxy battle against Wall Street activist investor Nelson Peltz over board seats.
At the annual shareholders' meeting held on the 3rd (local time), Disney passed the reappointment of 12 board members proposed by CEO Bob Iger and other executives with the approval of shareholders.
CEO Iger expressed, "I thank the shareholders for their trust in the board and management," adding, "Now that the turbulent proxy battle has been settled, I want to focus on creative growth by prioritizing value for shareholders and customers."
Trian Partners, led by Nelson Peltz, is an activist fund holding a 1.8% stake in Disney. At the end of November last year, Trian Partners demanded a reorganization of Disney's board through the nomination of Peltz and former Disney CFO Jay Rasulo, citing poor management and uncertainty in succession as the basis.
After declaring the proxy battle against Disney, Trian Partners attacked the current board and management with support from U.S. asset manager Neuberger Berman, California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS), the largest public pension fund in the U.S., and Ike Perlmutter, former Marvel chairman and one of Disney's largest individual investors.
In response, Disney sought support not only from institutional investors but also from founding family members such as Star Wars creator George Lucas, JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon, and Laurene Powell Jobs, widow of former Apple CEO Steve Jobs.
Disney's largest shareholder is known to be Vanguard Group (7.8%), with BlackRock (4.2%) and State Street (4.1%) also holding stakes. It is estimated that the support of Vanguard Group and BlackRock for the current management on the day before the shareholders' meeting played a significant role in fending off Trian Partners' attack. Disney is estimated to have spent about $40 million over several months in the battle against Trian Partners.
Trian Partners stated, "Although disappointed with the outcome, we are satisfied with all the constructive conversations we had with Disney stakeholders," adding, "We take pride in having influenced Disney to create value and establish good governance."
Some analysts noted that although Trian Partners lost the proxy battle at this shareholders' meeting, Disney's stock price has risen about 50% since the proxy battle was declared last November, resulting in economic gains.
Meanwhile, after the announcement of the shareholders' meeting results, Disney's stock closed at $118.98 on the New York Stock Exchange, down 3.13% from the previous session.
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