Disney Stock 'Resilient' In Uncertain Economy As Raised Guidance Signals Confidence
Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) analysts highlight strong parks and streaming growth with raised guidance after first-quarter results.
The Disney Analysts: Bank of America analyst Jessica Reif Ehrlich reiterated a Buy rating on Disney with a $140 price target.
Guggenheim analyst Michael Morris maintained a Buy rating and lowered the price target from $130 to $120.
Needham analyst Laura Martin maintained a Buy rating with a $125 price target.
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Bank of America on DIS: The media giant had a "resilient" quarter despite macro trends, Ehrlich said in a new investor note.
The analyst said revenue, operating income, earnings per share and free cash flow were all above expectations.
Ehrlich said Disney raising its full-year earnings per share was "encouraging considering recent macro volatility."
"While DIS did not raise FY25 Experiences guidance, future bookings data is strong, with Walt Disney World bookings up 4% in 3Q and 7% in 4Q," Ehrlich said.
The analyst said near-term catalysts include profitability inflection for the direct-to-consumer segment, reacceleration of the Parks business, and a strong film slate that drives the other business segments.
Guggenheim on DIS: Morris also highlighted the "resilience" shown by Disney in key categories despite the macro concerns.
"Broad-based beat coupled with management maintaining and/or raising most FY25 guidance and longer-term EPS growth outlook underpin confidence in our Buy rating," Morris said.
The analyst said that management commentary highlighted strong domestic park bookings over the next two quarters and said advertising revenue will likely come in ahead of previous guidance.
"DTC subscriber trends remain healthy, with management highlighting churn/engagement benefit from Hulu integration within Disney+."
The analyst said Disney’s long-term strength includes Parks growth and a renewed focus on profitable growth for media and entertainment, while consumer demand uncertainty and linear network decline remain concerns.
Needham on DIS: Raised earnings per share guidance and a newly announced Disney theme park highlighted in the quarter for Martin, who called it a "strong" quarter.
Martin said the launch of ESPN’s flagship streaming platform in the fourth quarter is another item to look forward to, as there will be an option to bundle it with Hulu and Disney.
"DIS believes that there's nothing like this subscription-driven bundle in the streaming industry. It's unrivaled in terms of quality, in terms of volume, and in terms of variety," Martin said.
The analyst highlighted Disney's DTC segment having its fourth consecutive profitable quarter with the company saying full-year DTC operating profit is expected to be over $1 billion.
"This strong profit growth suggests that Disney+ and Hulu are on track to achieve long-term sustainable profitability."
DIS Price Action: Disney stock was up 3.1% to $105.27 on Thursday, versus a 52-week trading range of $80.10 to $118.63. However, Disney stock is down 5% year-to-date in 2025, while shares have remained nearly flat over the last year.
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