Nelson Peltz has sold all of his shares in Disney, just weeks after his attempt to place himself and former Disney finance chief Jay Rasulo to the company’s board via a proxy battle waged by his company Trian Fund Management and Blackwells Capital, was resoundingly defeated.
CNBC reported Wednesday that Peltz sold his stock at approximately $120 a share, higher than the company’s current price per share of approximately $101.00.
Shares of the company are up about 11% so far in 2024.
In mounting his challenge to the company board, Peltz cited business concerns such, including the lack of a succession plan for CEO Bob Iger, as well as the rough patch the company has had since 2020. But Peltz has also made numerous statements that lent support to criticism that his objections had more to do with right wing politics.
On April 3 Peltz was dealt a decisive defest when Disney shareholders voted “by a substantial margin” to elect the company’s full slate of nominees to the board. Trian had nominated both Peltz and Rasulo. Blackwells Capital had nominated former Warner Bros. and NBCUniversal executive Jessica Schell as well as Tribeca Festival co-founder Craig Hatoff and TaskRabbit founder Leah Solivan. Iger won 94% of the vote, while Peltz came away with 31%.
An individual familiar with the vote told TheWrap, “This is the biggest loss ever for Nelson Peltz in a proxy fight.”
Following the vote, Trian explained in a statement, “We are proud of the impact we have had in refocusing this Company on value creation and good governance.”
The proxy war was the second Peltz and Trian had waged against Disney and after failing attempted to present the effort as a victory. Trian dropped its first battle against the company in February 2023 after it said Disney made “plans to do everything we wanted them to do.”
