Disney wowed buyers by asserting its seventh theme park can be in Abu Dhabi. CEO Bob Iger is hoping to seize among the 39 million vacationers who go to the capital of the United Arab Emirates. (Disney)
Disney CEO Bob Iger appears to have reignited the media large’s magic, with a number of Wall Avenue companies turning extra favorable on the inventory after it unveiled plans for a theme park in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates.
This might be Disney’s seventh theme park.
Shares gained about 13% over the previous two periods by Thursday’s shut, with Morgan Stanley, UBS, Barclays and Loop Capital all elevating value targets on the inventory to between $120 to $125 per share.
Ticker Safety Final Change Change % DIS THE WALT DISNEY CO. 105.12 +3.03
+2.97%
“It was very obvious to us that there were many people, basically hundreds of millions, in the world that are income-qualified where a trip to one of our six locations was pretty lengthy in nature and expensive. And so we felt the best way, obviously, to reach those people is to basically bring our product to them,” Iger mentioned through the firm’s earnings name.
The brand new park can be Disney’s seventh. (Walt Disney Firm)
“We talk about it being at [the] crossroads of the world: 500 million income-qualified people live within four hours; 120 million people will come through Dubai and Abu Dhabi this year alone. Abu Dhabi estimates that 39 million tourists will visit Abu Dhabi by 2030. That says a lot,” he mentioned.
Whereas Iger mentioned there aren’t any speedy plans for an eighth park, he didn’t rule it out in some unspecified time in the future as the corporate has beforehand mentioned “turbocharging that business with investment capital.”
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Miral Group, primarily based in Abu Dhabi, will develop the challenge.
First-quarter outcomes have been additionally stronger than anticipated with revenues rising 7% to $23.6 billion whereas adjusted earnings per share have been $1.45. The media large additionally lifted its annual forecast to $5.75, up from $5.30.
Disney additionally plans to speculate $30 billion within the Florida and California parks, this as Common plans to tackle Disney with its new park set to open mid-Could at Common Orlando Resort, the biggest U.S. theme park to open in 20 years.
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Bob Iger (Charley Gallay/Getty Pictures for Disney)
Iger returned to the CEO suite after a brief stint in retirement, following a quick tenure of tumult with former CEO Bob Chapek marked by political clashes with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis over the “Don’t Say Gay” invoice and worker backlash, amongst different challenges.
He and his board then efficiently defeated activist investor Nelton Peltz in a proxy battle that cleared the best way to return to the fundamentals.
“I want to thank our shareholders for their trust and confidence in our board and management,” Iger mentioned in April 2024, including that the corporate was “eager to focus 100% of our attention” on “growth and value creation for our shareholders and creative excellence for our consumers” now that the proxy battle has ended.
