The push for control over Disney’s board of directors is getting interesting. Ike Perlmutter, the former Chairman of Marvel Entertainment and Disney’s largest shareholder, has given control of his company stock over to Nelson Peltz.
Peltz has been in a proxy fight with the Walt Disney Company since the beginning of 2023. He has been trying to get on the board of directors, stemming from his disagreement with Bob Iger being reinstated as the company’s CEO.
News about the recent shakeup comes to us from WDWNT and the Wall Street Journal. The financial assistance, totaling roughly $2.5b from Perlmutter, could help secure multiple seats on the board.
The real test of Peltz’s new backing won’t happen until December when nominations for board of directors members start. Disney could save itself a lot of hassle by allowing Peltz to join. If not, this could create yet another proxy war. However, the goal is not to put Perlmutter on the board.
As to why the former Marvel Entertainment executive decided to transfer control of his stocks to Peltz, Perlmutter had this to say:
“While I was a Disney employee, I was not comfortable publicly stating my views on the company and its performance. As someone with a large economic interest in Disney’s success, I can no longer watch the business underachieve its great potential.“
The man from Marvel did not expand on which areas of the Walt Disney Company he was referring to, but we could take a guess. Pixar films and live-action remakes have not been performing well. You can check our Charting Pixar article for more on the significant slump at the box office.
There’s also the issue of Disney’s stock performance or lack thereof. In September, the price per share of the Walt Disney Company dipped below $80, and has not made a significant recovery since then. To give a little context, in March 2021, the stock price was above $195.
Do you think the battle for control of Disney’s board of directors could get sticky? Let us know.
[Source: WSJ]
[Source: WDWNT]
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