Initial results show Nelson Peltz has been thwarted by the $236 billion maker of Tide and Crest in the largest proxy battle in history (PG)

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Thomson Reuters

Nelson Peltz has been thwarted in the largest proxy battle in history, failing to claim a seat on the board of the $236 billion giant Procter & Gamble.

Preliminary results on Tuesday showed that Peltz, the founder of the $14 billion hedge fund Trian Partners, lost the proxy fight by a slim margin against P&G, the maker of consumer products like Tide, Crest, and Bounty and the largest-ever company to face such a challenge.

Trian quickly announced its disagreement with the vote count by P&G, which is led by CEO David Taylor and is calling for a recount.

"If anything, its plus or minus 1% — we need to really count it and understand it," Peltz said in an interview on CNBC.

The billionaire investor has been trying to shake up P&G since announcing a $3.5 billion stake in February. He was nominated to the board in July.

The two companies have spent some $100 million on the campaign to win over shareholders, 40% of which are individual retail investors, according to Reuters.

Peltz was considered a favorite to win one of the 11 board seats up for a vote since he had the backing of the three top shareholder advisory firms that recommend how mutual funds cast their vote, according to Reuters.

In the CNBC interview, Peltz said P&G should still put him on the board, given the mass of outside shareholders that favored Trian’s bid.

"The dissatisfaction on behalf of the retirees and the old-time shareholders was amazing," Peltz said.

"No matter what happens, I think [Taylor] should put me on the board," Peltz continued. "Even if they do win, think about what a Pyrrhic victory it is."

This story is developing.

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