The votes are in, and Disney has officially won its proxy fight, defeating activist investor Nelson Peltz’s campaign to shake up the company’s board of directors.

In today’s annual shareholders meeting, it was announced that shareholders voted to elect Disney’s full slate of 12 nominees, including CEO Bob Iger. The vote tally has yet to be made public, but Horacio Gutierrez (senior EVP and chief legal & compliance officer) noted that Disney achieved victory by a “substantial” margin over the two nominees put forth by Peltz’s Trian Partners and another three nominees from Blackwells Capital.

The one-hour meeting was streamed as a live webcast that started at 10:00am PST, and a replay will soon be available online.

This outcome of the media giant’s proxy vote is a pivotal sign of confidence from investors in Iger and his leadership. Making an appearance in the meeting, the CEO thanked shareholders for their support and refocused attention on the company’s “extraordinary future,” ambitious strategies and successful awards-season run this year, which culminated in 20 Oscar nominations. 

Notably, Iger was very bullish on the company’s 2024 film slate, calling out upcoming family-friendly features such as Inside Out 2, Mufasa and Moana 2. And beyond the big screen, he has “never been more confident” in Disney’s streaming business, which Iger says is poised to be a key earnings driver for the company. (Disney’s DTC vertical is nearing profitability after reducing its streaming losses over the past year.)

“Young audiences are huge consumers of video games,” Iger added, emphasizing that the company’s US$1.5-billion investment in Epic Games will put Disney in position to “forge even greater connections” with this demographic. And finally, Iger offered mighty praise to the media giant’s parks and experiences division as it continues to focus on strategies to expand Disney’s IPs in the sector, highlighting top-performing Disney World attractions like Pandora–The World of Avatar and Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway.

Today’s vote put an end to the long-running proxy fight that came with a rather heavy price tag for all parties involved. Disney reportedly spent roughly US$40 million in outreach efforts, while Peltz’s campaign is estimated to have cost US$25 million, and Blackwells’ is pegged at around US$6 million.

Vote estimates from earlier this week, as reported by Wall Street Journal and Reuters, suggested that Disney was on track to win today. The company’s three largest institutional shareholders—Vanguard Group, BlackRock and State Street—were likely very influential, although individual shareholders representing more than a third of outstanding shares certainly had a key role to play as well.

Representatives from Blackwells Capital declined to speak to shareholders in the meeting, but Peltz made an appearance before the results to state his case, ending on a positive note with praise for Disney’s entertainment legacy and robust library of IPs. “All we want is for Disney to get back to making great content, delighting consumers [and creating] sustainable long-term value for all of its shareholders,” he said. “Regardless of the outcome of today’s vote, Trian will be watching the company’s performance.”

Image courtesy of Brian McGowan via Unsplash