By Svea Herbst-Bayliss and David French

NEW YORK (Reuters) -Phillips 66 and activist investor Elliott Investment Management each won two seats on the oil refiner's board at an annual shareholders meeting on Wednesday, capping one of the biggest corporate boardroom battles of the year.

The preliminary tally, confirmed by both sides, followed months of increasingly bitter finger-pointing between the two sides, with Elliott pushing for asset sales and an improvement in performance and Phillips 66 saying its strategy is working and that shareholders would benefit.

By effectively splitting the vote, shareholders are signaling to Elliott and Phillips 66 that they want some change but not the kind of sweeping transformation the hedge fund was calling for, analysts said on Wednesday. Elliott was trying to have four of its nominated directors elected to the board to fill the four seats that were up for election this year.

"Today's vote sends a clear message: Shareholders demand meaningful change at Phillips 66," Elliott said in a statement confirming that Sigmund Cornelius and Michael Heim had been elected to oil refiner's board.

They will serve on the board instead of long-serving Phillips 66 director John Lowe and Howard Ungerleider, who had been a new director candidate for the company. Veteran director Robert Pease, who was initially put on the board with Elliott's blessing, and Nigel Hearne were elected from the firm's slate.

"This vote reflects a belief in our integrated strategy and a recognition that our early results do not yet reflect the full potential of our plan or the value inherent in this business," Phillips 66 CEO Mark Lashier said in a statement.

Phillips 66 shares were down 5.8% in mid-afternoon trading on the New York Stock Exchange.

Elliott, as part of its argument for actions to boost Phillips 66's share price, had advocated exploring the sale or spin off of its midstream business and other asset divestments, to focus on the company's refining operations.

Oil refining margins hit multi-year lows last year, and while they recovered somewhat in the early part of 2025, this backdrop helped support Phillips 66 management's insistence that a break-up of the company would not be viable.

Analysts said shareholders ultimately will benefit from the addition of four new directors who bring industry experience and knowledge about the company's business.

The results show Elliott received no support from any of the large index funds that often control such corporate votes, according to two sources.