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Ike Perlmutter, who generally keeps a low profile, made a rare public display of his displeasure with Disney.
The former chairman of Marvel Entertainment and largest individual shareholder in Disney has voiced his complaints about the company’s direction, saying it should be “sad” to investors in the company that he is gone. Since the sale of Marvel to Disney in 2009, Perlmutter has been a more marginal figure in the day-to-day management of Marvel, most recently overseeing its consumer products operations while Kevin Feige continues to lead Marvel Studios.
The investor released a statement, in which he claimed he was fired because of his “fixation on fiscal discipleship” and support for activist shareholder Nelson Peltz. The Trian CEO engaged in a proxy fight seeking a board seat and other considerations, but backed out earlier this year after CEO Bob Iger announced plans to cut $5.5 billion in expenses.
Perlmutter’s statement follows an interview with The Wall Street Journal, in which he said his departure was not part of a previously announced company-wide redundancy plan, as Disney had claimed, but was fired for fighting with executives. Perlmutter has long been known to have a frosty relationship with Iger and Feige.
“I have long anticipated that my employment with Disney would end,” Perlmutter said in the statement. “That this should come as a result of my efforts to help Disney improve its business should sadden many shareholders as it does me, the company’s largest individual shareholder. Despite my termination, I will continue to hold onto my shares of Disney and continue to pursue improvements to the company for the benefit of all stakeholders.”
Perlmutter said his desire to see costs reduced to “improve efficiency” is why he’s supporting Peltz.
“It’s Disney’s approach to operations that has generated my support for Trian, in seeking to restore the dividend, fix the company’s inflated cost structure, and ensure a successful CEO succession.
“Trian CEO Nelson Peltz has a long history of improving shareholder returns at many leading consumer businesses. I believe he can do the same for Disney as a member of its board. This is a disappointment for I and I believe many fellow shareholders did not welcome him to the board and it took the threat of a proxy contest to get the board and management to take action.
The proxy battle effectively ended in February when Iger announced cost cuts and layoffs numbering 7,000 worldwide, as well as a plan to return to returning dividends to shareholders by the end of 2023. after a three-year freeze.
Perlmutter, who sold Marvel to Disney for $4 billion and owns about $3 billion in Disney shares, said that despite his “termination of employment,” he will continue to hold his Disney stock and “look for improvements” for shareholders. “I want only the best for Disney’s stakeholders – its employees around the world, its millions of loyal fans and customers, its talented creators and contributors, and its many shareholders, like me. I will continue to advocate for actions that secure Disney’s long-term financial health and enable a new generation of management to reverse the trend of declining shareholder equity and restore the dividend to its prior level.”
Dade Hayes and Jill Goldsmith contributed to this report.
