LOS ANGELES, May 5 (AP) — Shareholders of Pixar Animation Studios voted on Friday to approve the company's acquisition by the Walt Disney Company for $7.4 billion in stock.

The vote makes Pixar a subsidiary of Disney and makes the former chief executive of Pixar, Steven P. Jobs, the largest shareholder of Disney, with about a 7 percent stake.

The deal is an effort to help restore Disney's luster as a leader in the animated film business. Disney's own efforts have faltered over the last 10 years, while Pixar's films have been successful.

Mr. Jobs was named to Disney's board as a nonindependent member. Under the plan, Pixar shareholders will exchange each of their shares for 2.3 shares of Disney stock.

The acquisition closed quickly after the vote. Regulators had previously cleared the deal.

As part of the deal, important Pixar figures will take executive positions at Disney's animation and theme parks units.

Pixar will keep its brand name and continue to be based in Emeryville, Calif., as part of an effort to preserve the creative culture that has fueled its success.

John A. Lasseter, who was Pixar's executive vice president, will become chief creative officer of the animation studios and principal creative adviser at Walt Disney Imagineering, which designs and builds the company's theme parks.

Mr. Lasseter began his career as a Disney animator and is the creative force behind Pixar's films.

Pixar's president, Edwin E. Catmull, will serve as president of the combined Pixar and Disney animation studios.

The deal comes just a month before a distribution agreement between the companies was set to expire.

Disney agreed to finance Pixar's first computer-animated feature film, "Toy Story," in 1991. The film was released in 1995, the same year Pixar became a public company.

The relationship between the companies has produced a string of box-office hits, including the films "Finding Nemo" and "The Incredibles." The seventh and last film under the old distribution agreement, "Cars," will be released June 9.

Shares of Disney rose 69 cents, to $29.09. Shares of Pixar rose $2.41, to $67.69.