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The
prominent activist investor's Trian Fund Management on Thursday
filed documents with the U.S. securities regulator for his
election as a director at Disney after the company denied him a
board seat.
Peltz's move is a serious challenge to Disney Chief Executive
Bob Iger, who recently returned from retirement to lead the
company for a second time.
The battle would pit the activist investor known for his work at
consumer companies against Iger who has been one of the most
popular figures in Hollywood for decades.
Disney's shares rose more than 1% in premarket trading, with
some analysts pointing to Peltz's past successes in bringing
changes at firms that he has targeted. The stock had tumbled 39%
last year.
"Investors would appreciate additional assurance that past
problems won't repeat," Rosenblatt Securities said. "Peltz --
with a change-maker history at targets including P&G, Heinz, and
Wendy's -- could provide a measure of that."
Trian Fund Management owns roughly $900 million worth of Disney
stock, which equates to an about 0.5% stake.
Peltz, who says Disney's problems are primarily self-inflicted,
has not given a detailed plan for achieving his goals.
Sources familiar with Disney have said he has only leveled
criticisms without offering possible solutions.
Disney has given Peltz access to the board and management over
the last months, but blocked his request to join the board, in
part, due to his lack of expertise in media and technology,
people familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.
The media giant has also faced pressure from Third Point's
Daniel Loeb to refresh its board, over uncertainty around
profitability of its streaming business and the surprise return
of Iger.
Investors will vote later this year on whether Peltz should sit
on the company's board. Last year, the annual shareholder
meeting was held on March 9.
(Reporting by Akash Sriram and Aditya Soni in Bengaluru; Editing
by Shinjini Ganguli)
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