Svea Herbst-Bayliss and Greg Roumeliotis
(Reuters) – Walt Disney (NYSE:) The company received enough shareholder votes to dismiss a lawsuit against its board brought by Nelson Peltz’s hedge fund Trian Fund Management, people familiar with the matter said Tuesday.
As of Tuesday evening, enough votes had been cast to give Disney board members a comfortable lead over Trian’s two challengers, including Peltz and former Disney CFO Jay Rasulo, sources said.
Blackwells Capital, another hedge fund that nominated Disney board members, was also unsuccessful, the sources said.
The outcome of the most high-profile boardroom fight this year will be announced at Disney’s annual shareholder meeting on Wednesday, and sources warned there was always the possibility that some shareholders could change their vote. They requested anonymity ahead of the official announcement.
Disney representatives did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Trian and Blackwells had no comment.
Trian may still be able to claim a financial victory at Disney, given that the company’s shares have risen nearly 50% since early October, when Peltz said he was planning a new push for seats.
Disney has announced a number of changes over the past few months as it seeks to regain investor confidence, including a high-profile investment in Fortnite maker Epic Games and plans to launch streaming service ESPN in 2025. The company also updated its board with two new members.
Tryan and Blackwells argued that new blood was needed on the board because Disney had failed succession planning, lost its creative spark, and failed to properly utilize new technology.
Bob Iger, who will retire in 2022 to lead Disney for a second time, is trying to revitalize the company’s creative directions, make its streaming business profitable and find partners to help build ESPN’s digital future.