Reports Indicate That Disney Has Won Its Proxy Battle With Nelson Peltz
As voting drew to a close last night for The Walt Disney Company’s board elections, Reuters reported that Disney came out ahead and managed to hold off a bid from activist investor Nelson Peltz to secure a seat on the board.
As of Tuesday evening, the publication said, Disney had enough votes to put their board nominees safely ahead of Peltz and his ally, former Disney CFO Jay Rasulo.
Photo: CNBC
Blackwells Capital, which had also nominated three candidates for board director positions, was also unsuccessful. Their push for board seats never seemed to gain momentum.
The Final Results Will Be Announced Later Today
While Peltz may not get the board seat that he has coveted, Trian will likely still try to claim victory in their proxy battle, as Disney’s shares have increased nearly 50% since early October. That was the month that Peltz launched his renewed bid for a Disney seat.
The final results of the voting will be announced later today at Disney’s annual meeting.
Photo: The Walt Disney Company
While vanquishing Peltz will be a major win for Disney and a feather in Bob Iger’s cap, the early leaking of voting numbers has rubbed some on Wall Street the same way.
Bill Ackman Slams Disney For Leaking Voting Numbers- Endorses Peltz
Hedge fund manager and CEO of Pershing Square, Bill Ackman, took to Twitter last night and called the leaks a “miscarriage of shareholder governance and justice.”
“Only the company and its advisors have access to how shareholders have voted before the day of the annual meeting. My understanding is that it is illegal to release the outcome of the vote prior to it being finalized as it has the effect of manipulating the outcome. Here, the company and/or its advisors have leaked that Disney is winning the contest. It is really inappropriate that they have done so,” he wrote.
Photo: CNN
Notably, Ackman then went on to endorse Peltz in the 11th hour of the election.
“Lastly but importantly, I think highly of Nelson Peltz. I am sure he would be greatly additive as a member of the Disney board. Ask yourself, why is the company fighting so hard to keep him off? The fact that the company leaked the early returns to the media is further evidence that an activist of Nelson’s caliber deserves to be on this board for all shareholders benefit,” he continued.
“Based on my knowledge of Nelson’s capabilities and the dirty tricks implemented by the company and its advisors, I strongly recommend that shareholders vote for Nelson Peltz for the Disney board.”
There have been a few recent articles in the press about @Disney ‘winning’ its proxy contest with Nelson Peltz based on early election returns that have been leaked to the media. We don’t have an investment in Disney, but I thought it useful to point out the inappropriateness of…
— Bill Ackman (@BillAckman) April 2, 2024
The final results of the Disney board elections will be announced later today at The Walt Disney Company’s annual meeting.
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