With Half of the Votes In, Disney Has Taken the Lead in its Proxy Battle With Nelson Peltz
According to The Wall Street Journal, The Walt Disney Company has taken the lead in its proxy battle with Nelson Peltz’s Trian Partners, with more than half of shareholder votes in.
Disney’s campaign was boosted when BlackRock, which owns around 78 million Disney shares, voted for the Disney candidate. BlackRock is Disney’s second-largest shareholder with a 4.2% stake.
T. Rowe Price, another major Disney shareholder, also announced yesterday that it plans to support Disney. The money manager owns 9.3 million Disney shares, about 5% of the total.
While Disney has an early lead, there is no guarantee that they will come out on top.
Peltz Has Scored a Number of Endorsements
Late last week, Peltz was leading his race to replace Disney director Maria Elena Lagomasino with 20%. His ally, former Disney CFO Jay Rasulo, has been trailing in the vote since the jump.
While Disney has scored a series of high-level endorsements from the likes of George Lucas, Jamie Dimon, and Laurene Powell Jobs, Peltz has received endorsements of his own.
Late last week, the activist investor received support from the California Public Employees’ Retirement System, which is the world’s largest pension fund. He has also previously gotten endorsements from Institutional Shareholders Services and Glass Lewis.
Down to the Wire
The Disney proxy battle is expected to be the most expensive battle of all time, with both spending millions to woo investors. Blackwells Capital is also attempting to score three seats on the Disney board, but their bid has gained little traction.
The battle between Disney and Peltz will come to an end on Wednesday when The Walt Disney Company’s annual meeting takes place. By the look of things, the vote will go down to the wire.
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