The current administration of Bob Iger as CEO of Disney It is far from being a success, but the executive overcame one of the biggest behind-the-scenes challenges. In a meeting with shareholders this Wednesday (3), the candidacy of Nelson Peltz and from Trian Fund Management to the company’s board of directors was rejected. The 12 names appointed by Disney itself, and headed by Iger, for the board, were approved.
With support from the former CEO of Marvel, Ike Perlmutter, Peltz and former Disney finance chief Jay Rasulo want to take two of the board’s 12 seats. Both were appointed by Trian Fund Managemet, a firm that has US$3.5 billion in Disney shares (approximately 32 million shares, out of the company’s 1.83 billion). Perlmutter is responsible for 79% of Disney shares within Trian.
Trian and Peltz’s argument was that Disney’s stock price is too low, that the company has lost its box office leadership position, and, most importantly, that Iger’s team has failed in the important job of finding a successor (Iger pointed Bob Chapek, who was fired, making room for Iger’s return). They also say that shareholders lost more than US$200 billion in share value, and demonstrate distrust in the ability of the board appointed by Iger to recover all of this.
Until a few weeks ago, Peltz and Rasulo, the Trian team, seemed to have lost steam. Then, some support emerged: Institutional Shareholders Services (ISS), who recommended Peltz (but not Rasulo), and the Edgar-Jones Ratings Co.who supported both Finally, the CalPERS, a California pension fund that owns 6.65 million Disney shares, declared a vote in favor of Peltz and Rasulo. It is worth noting, however, that only CalPERS had voting power among these.
Iger’s camp had a lot of support. George LucasDisney’s largest individual shareholder, declared support for Iger. Michael Eisnerformer CEO of the company, Laurene Powell Jobsthe company’s largest shareholder, and the family of Walt Disneyincluding his daughter Abigailsided with the current CEO.
Iger and Disney greatly highlighted the positive results of recent quarters, the change in strategy that the company has applied with spending cuts and focus on big films, and Peltz’s lack of experience in the world of entertainment as his main arguments against Trian.
The result was a victory against their rivals, and control of Disney’s future remains with Iger’s team.
Tags: Disney Shareholders reject Nelson Peltzs candidacy Bob Iger maintains control company
