Disney’s Bob Iger wins bitter proxy battle with activist investors over board seats

Disney chief Bob Iger prevailed in a bitter proxy battle with activist investors over the company’s board members Wednesday.

The Mouse House garnered a “substantial margin” of support at its annual shareholders’ meeting, keeping its board of directors from relinquishing a board seat to Peltz, head of Trian management, and former Disney chief financial officer Jay Rasulo.

Blackwells Capital, another hedge fund that nominated three board director candidates, was also unsuccessful in its attempt.

“I want to thank our shareholders for their trust and confidence in our board and management,” Iger said. “With the distracting proxy contest now behind us, we’re eager to focus 100% of our attention on our most important priorities: growth and value creation for our shareholders and creative excellence for our consumers.”

Shareholders voted to elect all 12 nominees recommended by the Disney Board: Mary T. Barra, Safra A. Catz, Amy L. Chang, D. Jeremy Darroch, Carolyn N. Everson, Michael B.G. Froman, James P. Gorman, Robert A. Iger, Maria Elena Lagomasino, Calvin R. McDonald, Mark G. Parker, and Derica W. Rice.

Reuters had reported hours before the vote was cast that Disney had won enough support to end the high-profile board fight, but that did not stop Peltz from making his case ahead during the meeting.

“All we want is to get Disney to get back to making great content and delighting consumers and for disney to create sustainable long-term value,” Peltz told shareholders on the webcast. “Regardless of the outcome of today’s vote, Trian will be watching the company’s performance.”

He noted that under the threat of the proxy battle, Disney had rolled out a string of changes in order to win back investors’ confidence, including a buzzy investment in “Fortnite” maker Epic Games and plans to launch an ESPN streaming service in 2025. It also refreshed its board with two new members.

Trian and Blackwells had argued that new blood was needed in the board room because Disney had bungled its CEO succession planing, lost its creative spark and failed to properly harness new technology.

“We are immensely grateful to our shareholders for their investment in Disney and their belief in its future, particularly during this period of great change in the broader entertainment industry,” Disney chairman Mark Parker added after the Mouse House clinched the victory.