The battle over
Walt Disney’s
board entered a new phase this past Thursday, with Trian Fund Management nominating two directors to the House of Mouse’s board.
Nelson Peltz, chief executive officer of Trian, nominated himself as well as James “Jay” Rasulo, former chief financial officer at
Disney,
who spent three decades at the media and entertainment conglomerate.
“Jay and I have the strategic, operating, financial, and governance expertise to help Disney and are committed to working with the other members of the board and management team to address the fundamental issues underlying the company’s continued poor performance,” Peltz said in a statement.
This is Peltz’ second run with Disney after abandoning a proxy battle earlier this year. Peltz has grown frustrated by what he calls “chronic underperformance” at the company, even amid billions of dollars of announced cost-cutting measures.
Peltz says that the “root cause” of Disney’s woes lies with the board, which is “too closely connected” to CEO Bob Iger and not aligned with the interests of shareholders.
Shares of Disney are up 8% this year but have fallen by more than half from the all-time high reached in March 2021.
Disney acknowledged Trian’s nominations but noted that it has an “experienced, diverse, and highly qualified board.”
Disney’s shareholder meeting is expected to take place this spring. It’s looking like a harsh winter in the happiest place on Earth.
Write to Carleton English at [email protected]
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