The Walt Disney Company has reportedly had its full slate of 12 nominations reach a point where they will be elected to Disney’s Board of Directors. This means that the company has successfully fended off the efforts of Trian Group and also Blackwells Capital. This is according to Reuters.
As of Tuesday night, there were enough votes cast for Disney’s slate of nominees for the Board of Directors to stop the efforts of Nelson Peltz and his Trian Group from getting both Peltz and their other nominee, former Disney executive Jay Rasulo, on to the board. Blackwells Capital also had advocated for three of its own nominees to join the board and then see the board expanded. Neither of these initiatives appear to have succeeded, however.
The sources told Reuters that while it looked like Disney would defeat its foes in this proxy fight, there is still a chance that votes could be changed ahead of the official reveal of results during Disney’s annual shareholder meeting. The shareholder meeting starts at 10:00 AM PDT on April 3, 2024.
The tussle for seats come as Disney Bob Iger continues to put his mark again, his second time as CEO of The Walt Disney Company. Since returning as CEO after former CEO Bob Chapek was fired, Iger has been working hard to right the company and put it on firm financial ground amid a changing industry, set it on the right path for the future, and also set up a succession plan. Peltz argued that this was not being done adequately enough and that the company needed his leadership as a part of its board to get things on the right track.
In recent weeks, the fight between Peltz and Disney had gotten particularly acrimonious as both sides ramped up efforts to influence votes. However, at the end of the day, the company’s largest shareholder, Vanguard Group, and other investors appear to have supported current Disney leadership. Many business people, high profile shareholders, and even celebrities had lent their voices to support the current leadership.
Daps Magic will be covering the Disney annual shareholder meeting. What do you think of this development in the Board of Directors vote? Is this good for the future of the company? Share your thoughts and opinions in the comments below!
