Disney has emerged victorious in its board battle against activist investor Nelson Peltz's hedge fund Trian Fund Management. The company has secured enough shareholder votes to defeat the challenge mounted by Trian. The votes cast have put Disney's board directors ahead of Trian's two challengers, which included Peltz and former Disney CFO Jay Rasulo. Another hedge fund, Blackwells Capital, which nominated three board director candidates at Disney, was also unsuccessful in its attempt. The result of this high-profile board fight will be announced at Disney's annual shareholder meeting on Wednesday [f398134e].
The annual shareholder meeting, scheduled for Wednesday, will see the culmination of the months-long proxy battle between Disney and Trian Fund Management. Shareholders will cast their votes to elect a 12-member board. Disney CEO Bob Iger has received support from influential shareholders, including Vanguard Group and BlackRock, the company's second-largest shareholder. The California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS) has also voted in favor of Trian's candidates. Trian has been critical of Disney's board, citing underperformance and strategy oversight failures. The vote for the two board seats will be revealed at the meeting [6ddf28d2] [f398134e].
In addition to the board battle, Disney has been working to reinvigorate its creative franchises and make its streaming business profitable. The company's annual meeting comes at a pivotal time for these efforts [bac80e86].
Meanwhile, Trilogy Metals Inc. has reported the successful completion of its Annual Meeting of Shareholders, with all proposed items receiving shareholder endorsement. The election of directors and approval of plans received overwhelming support, except for Gregory Lang who received a slightly lower approval rate. The appointment of the auditor and other proposals were also approved. Trilogy Metals holds a 50% interest in Ambler Metals LLC, which owns the Upper Kobuk Mineral Projects in Alaska. The detailed voting results are available on the SEDAR+ and EDGAR platforms. The company's stock has experienced a decline over the past week. Analysts do not expect Trilogy Metals to be profitable this year, but the company's liquid assets exceed short-term obligations. InvestingPro offers additional insights and analysis for interested investors [ff1e73d4].
Meanwhile, Oscar-winning filmmaker John Ridley has criticized Nelson Peltz for his remarks about Disney's superhero movies and all-Black cast. Ridley believes that Peltz has no place on the Disney board. Ridley expressed his views on the Doc Talk podcast, where he also discussed two films from the True/False film festival: 'A Photographic Memory' and 'A Photographic Memory' [3dfab581].
Data indicates that 'pro-woke, pro-DEI' shareholder activism would deliver greater economic value than an anti-woke, anti-DEI strategy. The American economy has lost $50 trillion since 1990 due to race-based barriers to opportunity. DEI efforts increase employee engagement, generating an additional $550 billion in profits annually. Nelson Peltz's recent 'anti-woke, anti-DEI' attack on The Walt Disney Company failed despite the prevailing sentiment. Representation in the workplace and C-suite drives financial returns. HR departments should implement hiring programs that encourage demographic diversity. The same tactics can help bring greater gender diversity to boards and C-suites. Greater representation among entertainers and emissaries drives returns. Film producers and casting directors need to work with demographically diverse actors. Government entities and universities can take the same approach to sourcing more diverse participants. Representation will be driven by shareholder engagement. Stakeholder capitalism is embraced by prudent investors and requires engagement to maximize long-term value. Nelson Peltz's failure is a lesson to embrace shareholder engagement strategies that uplift people and increase value [71d4b262].