Disney trounces activist shareholders in a major win for Bob Iger

Disney won a hard-fought proxy battle against a group of activist investors who sought to secure seats on the company’s board of directors. The shareholder vote served as a legacy-defining victory for CEO Bob Iger.

Disney won a hard-fought proxy battle against a group of activist investors who sought to secure seats on the company’s board of directors. The shareholder vote served as a legacy-defining victory for CEO Bob Iger. Disney’s board triumphed by what the company called “a substantial margin” over the nominees put forward by Trian Fund Management and Blackwells Capital at its annual shareholder meeting. Although Disney’s stock is up nearly 50% over the past six months, some investors — including Trian and Blackwells Capital — had hoped for higher returns and a more forceful shakeup inside the House of Mouse. In particular, Trian wanted to align pay with performance for key executives, restore Disney’s box office dominance and expand the company’s profit margin. Iger didn’t just beat Trian’s Nelson Peltz, but trounced him, according to a person familiar with the vote count. Peltz’s attempt at a board seat received less than one-third of the vote, around 31%, according to the source. Jay Rasulo, the former Disney finance chief who joined Peltz’s attempt, also lost by a wide margin, the person said. Retail shareholders, which hold roughly 35% of Disney stock, also voted overwhelmingly – 75% – for Disney’s candidates. Still, board members typically get far bigger totals than three-quarters of the vote, suggesting Peltz captured some strong interest from Average Joe stockholders.