Activist investor Nelson Peltz called on Disney to “target and achieve Netflix-like profits” and finalize a succession plan to replace CEO Bob Iger, according to a Thursday proxy filing. I swore that I would.
Mr. Peltz has been feuding with Mr. Iger for more than a year, with the company's stock hitting a 10-year low, according to filings, and has put himself and former Disney chief financial officer Jay Laslo at the Mouse House. He has been officially appointed to the board of directors.
The new proxy war began after Disney rejected Peltz's nomination on Tuesday and nominated its own director candidates. Mr. Peltz's Trian Fund Management is Disney's largest active shareholder, owning $3 billion in common stock in the troubled company.
Disney stock rose more than 2% to close at $92.14 on Thursday, after trading as low as $79 last October.
Peltz said Netflix is Disney's biggest competitor and aims to achieve profit margins of 15% to 20% by 2027, according to the filing.
He called Disney's current board oversight “terrible” in an interview. CNBC's “Squawk Box” After submission.
“They promised to improve the situation. I took them at their word,” he said. “Things got worse. Stocks went down. Results got worse. So it's over. We can't keep giving them any more chances.”
Peltz also touched on the future of ESPN, which he called the media giant's “crown jewel” and said it needs to create “a solid and detailed payback period and business plan to build out the platform.”
Iger has already said his priority is to make ESPN a “great” digital sports platform. He is also considering a network strategy that could include selling a stake to the NFL.
Peltz and Laszlo are targeting “low single-digit operating income growth” for the theme park, according to the filing.
Peltz said in an interview with CNBC that he visited Disney World last week.
“It was very appealing because…we didn't have special passes. We didn't have a tour guide…everybody was nice. I mean, Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios are amazing,” he said. Ta. “All the employees were smiling, probably in large part because they didn't own Disney stock.”
Peltz and Laszlo noted in their filing that Iger had consistently delayed his retirement date and returned to management after firing former CEO Bob Chapek in 2022, noting that “eventually, CEO “I will make a successful successor.''
Iger's current contract runs through 2026.
Mr. Tryon also said that Mr. Iger's hefty $31.6 million pay last year would be “aligned with executive compensation and performance,” with Disney shares largely unchanged and underperforming the S&P 500 index in 2023. Ta.
Mr. Peltz also said he would put the studio's creativity into a board-led initiative to “restore executive accountability” so that Disney, which owns Marvel and Pixar, can regain its top spot at the box office after a spate of failures. I asked them to reconsider.
The proxy fight comes as Mr. Iger seeks to cut the media giant's costs, rein in spending and make its Disney+ streaming service more profitable. As part of the reforms, Mr. Iger cut thousands of jobs.
The battle with activists at Disney is Peltz's second time lobbying the company in less than a year. He had previously called for cost cuts and board changes, but the fight ended last February when Mr. Iger announced more than $5 billion in cost cuts and layoffs.
