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Elon Musk, the world\u2019s third richest man, promised Disney<\/a> shareholders he would dip into his vast wealth to buy up stock in the troubled entertainment giant if they voted hedge fund manager Nelson Peltz onto the board today.\u00a0<\/p>\n The activist investor is losing a bitterly-fought proxy war with Bob Iger, whose decision to halt ad spending on X<\/a> threatened to\u00a0bankrupt<\/a>\u00a0Musk\u2019s social media company.<\/p>\n The Tesla<\/a> boss retaliated by calling for Disney to\u00a0sack its CEO<\/a>\u00a0and is funding a wrongful dismissal\u00a0lawsuit against Disney<\/a>\u00a0filed by actress Gina Carano. <\/p>\n Musk, who recently posed smiling for the cameras standing next to Peltz, openly endorsed the hedge fund manager on Wednesday, predicting good things for the stock price.<\/p>\n \u201cWhile I don\u2019t own any Disney shares today, I would definitely buy their shares if Nelson were elected to the board,\u201d he posted to X. \u201cHe would help reform the company, improve the quality of product and generally serve in the best interests of shareholders.\u201d<\/p>\n The endorsement may come too late, however. The shareholder meeting is scheduled for today, and more than half the votes have reportedly already been cast.\u00a0<\/p>\n While I don\u2019t own any Disney shares today, I would definitely buy their shares if Nelson were elected to the board. <\/p>\n His track record is excellent.<\/p>\n \u2014 Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 3, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n While the largest U.S. public pension fund, CalPERS, and asset manager Neuberger Berman both\u00a0backed Peltz<\/a>, a story in the\u00a0Wall Street Journal<\/em>\u00a0this week predicted Disney had\u00a0pulled ahead<\/a>\u00a0of Peltz, while\u00a0Reuters<\/em>\u00a0reported sources on Tuesday as saying the founding partner of Trian Partners\u00a0already lost<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n The leaks angered fellow activist investor and hedge fund billionaire Bill Ackman, who called for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to punish Disney for its carefully timed blow that sunk Iger\u2019s rival.<\/p>\n \u201cThe SEC should do a thorough investigation of this proxy contest and appropriately punish whoever is responsible for this miscarriage of shareholder governance and justice,\u201d Ackman\u00a0wrote<\/a>\u00a0on Tuesday, arguing only Disney officers were privy to the vote tally.<\/p>\n Disney did not respond to a request for comment from\u00a0Fortune<\/em>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Peltz hopes to\u00a0shake up a board<\/a>\u00a0believed to be too cozy with its CEO. <\/p>\n He believes the entertainment giant\u2019s vaunted value-creating \u201cflywheel\u201d is at risk\u2014and judging from the recent rally in Disney shares, it seemed as if investors by and large agreed.\u00a0<\/p>\n Many of the films Disney produced last year\u00a0flopped<\/a>\u00a0at the box office, driving less traffic to its lucrative\u00a0theme parks<\/a>, whose role in turn is to rejuvenate consumer interest in its\u00a0underlying content<\/a>\u00a0like its Marvel Cinematic Universe franchise and start the process afresh.<\/p>\n Yet Pixar no longer reliably churns out hits, legendary properties like Star Wars have withered on the vine and even the once indestructible MCU suffered its lowest box office ever in\u00a0The Marvels<\/em>\u00a0when adjusted for inflation. <\/p>\n Meanwhile, Disney\u2019s animation studio offers up one uninspired live-action retread of a beloved classic after another.<\/p>\n The company\u2019s creative bankruptcy has offered ample fodder for critics and was even lampooned by\u00a0South Park<\/em>, which singled out Iger and\u00a0Lucasfilm<\/a>\u00a0studio boss Kathleen Kennedy as the culprits behind the mismanagement.<\/p>\n There have been a few recent articles in the press about @Disney<\/a> ‘winning’ its proxy contest with Nelson Peltz based on early election returns that have been leaked to the media. We don’t have an investment in Disney, but I thought it useful to point out the inappropriateness of\u2026<\/p>\n \u2014 Bill Ackman (@BillAckman) April 2, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n Venerable proxy advisory firm Institutional Shareholder Services subsequently\u00a0recommended<\/a>\u00a0investors back Peltz in his crusade to shake up the company, but the well-timed Disney leaks may have turned the tables on the would-be board director.\u00a0<\/p>\n Ackman\u2014himself a veteran of proxy battles\u2014argued most professional money managers are too afraid of losing access to the C-suite and will only vote against a board\u2019s recommendations if convinced they will succeed.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cAn institution may think: if Peltz is going to lose, it is not worth taking the risk of offending management by voting for him,\u201d he wrote, adding he too was\u00a0the victim of a similar tactic<\/a>\u00a0when facing off against payroll company ADP.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
Billionaire Bill Ackman wants Disney punished for leaks<\/h2>\n
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