Disney Stocks Soar as Analyst Claims “The Magic Is Back”

Yesterday’s shocking announcement may have been just what The Walt Disney Company needed to recover from their dismal stock plummet. The company has been on a downward trajectory since Bob Chapek took up the position as Chief Executive Officer losing more than 40% of  its stock value during his tenure.

The biggest nose dive the stock experienced was earlier this month after the 4th Quarter Earnings call. Disney announced earnings that were $1 billion below Wall Street predictions Disney announced earnings that were $1 billion below Wall Street predictions and Bob Chapek… didn’t seem to care. Disney Stocks immediately fell 12% which was their most dramatic drop in decades. This didn’t sit well with investors.

In a shocking turn of events former CEO Bob Iger was announced as the company’s new CEO. The popular former executive has the confidence of Hollywood and Wall Street, something Chapek could never manage. As investors and fans alike tried to come to terms with what the shake up means, Disney’s stock prices soared even well before the market reopened this morning (November 21, 2022).

Credit: NYSE

Throughout the night Disney’s stock prices rose 9.44% giving shares an opening bell price of $100.47 an hour before the market opens. That figure is expected to rise considerably more once trading opens at 9:30 am est.

Analysts report that the rapid rise in Disney stocks is due to confidence in Bob Iger’s leadership. “We believe Iger has a proven track record for growing the Company, and his reappointment as CEO, in our view, will be seen as a positive development for the stock,” said KeyBanc Capital Markets analyst Brandon Nispel.

“Ultimately, we see Bob Iger as a proven leader whose previous tenure included the acquisitions of Pixar, Marvel, and Lucasfilm, and who we believe is viewed as a well-respected and reputable upgrade for the company,” Nispel added.

Other analysts and investors echoed these statements. Wells Fargo’s Steven Cahall summarized that “While the announcement doesn’t solve all of Disney’s problems, we think investors will embrace it as it puts perhaps the best leader in media at the helm with a mandate to shake things up.” he noted that investors and creative are fans of Iger which will instill a confidence in the company that has been lacking since Chapek took the helm.

Perhaps most notably though, MoffettNathanson analyst Michael Nathanson cheered that the “magic is back” for investors before saying, “We raise the valuation multiple to reflect our greater confidence in the company’s trajectory under the leadership of returning CEO Bob Iger to help guide the company through this period of massive change. We applaud Disney’s board for the courage to make this change.”