Disney Said To Be Edging Past Nelson Peltz In Proxy Fight Ahead Of Annual Meeting
02.04.2024 - 05:31
/ deadline.com
Disney may have nudged Nelson Peltz farther from its board as giant BlackRock is said to be backing the company’s slate of directors. The firm is Disney’s second-largest shareholder at about 4.2%.
The news, first reported in the Wall Street Journal, followed T. Rowe Price, an 0.5% owner, coming out in support of CEO Bob Iger and Disney as shareholders head into the last day of voting ahead of the annual meeting set for Wednesday at 10 am ET/1 am PT. The board has over the past three months been the focus of the most expensive proxy fight on record pitting directors and CEO Bob Iger against Peltz, the billionaire activist investor who has pounded Disney on strategy, stock price and, mainly, poor succession planning.
The deadline for voting is 11:59 tonight. The WSJ said that over half of all shares had been voted so far, so things could still change.
Disney declined to comment. BlackRock didn’t respond to requests for comment.
Peltz’ Trian Partners is voting about 1.5% of Disney, his shares and those of ally Ike Perlmutter. He wants board seats for himself and former Disney executive Jay Rasulo. To that end, he has asked shareholders to unseat Disney nominees Maria Elena Lagomasino and Michael Froman. There are 12 director seats. The nominees with the most votes win.
Trian and Disney have been hurling mud at each other since early this year, bombarding stockholders with frequent and elaborate missives, videos and charts. Disney has racked up a bill of at least $40 million in outreach, including telephone calls to individual retail shareholders. The company has a larger than average retail shareholder base.
Trian has spent about $25 million in its push. Battle lines have been forming. BlackRock is a big get. There’s