Activist investor Nelson Peltz moved behind the scenes this week to gain two or more seats on Disney’s board, according to a CNBC report on Thursday — but Disney CEO Bob Iger struck back with a move of his own.
The battle for the soul of The Walt Disney Company is on.
The usual “person familiar with the matter” told CNBC that Peltz is seeking at least three seats, presumably for himself and two more for his investment firm, Trian. Trian is one of Disney’s largest single investors, controlling more than $3 billion in shares, but there’s also a personal element that I’ll get to in a moment.
Iger is having none of that. The New York Times reported that, on Wednesday, Iger is adding two more seats to Disney’s board, loyal to him and to be held by Morgan Stanley CEO James P. Gorman and the UK’s former Sky TV chief, Jeremy Darroch.
Peltz promised a new proxy fight — his second, after ending his first attempt in February — for control of Disney’s board, saying in a press release Thursday, “Investor confidence is low, key strategic questions loom, and even Disney’s CEO is acknowledging that the Company’s challenges are greater than previously…
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