Walt Disney FY2027 EPS Estimate Reduced by Erste Group Bank

Key Points

• Erste Group Bank slightly trimmed its FY2027 EPS forecast for Walt Disney from $7.32 to $7.31, versus a market consensus of $6.61 per share.
• Disney recently beat quarterly expectations with $1.63 EPS (vs. $1.57 est.) and $25.98B revenue, trades around $101.52, and retains a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average analyst target of $133.53.
• Strategic and regulatory developments are in focus: Disney has shelved an ESPN spin-off to keep sports central to streaming, while the FCC has opened an early review of ABC's broadcast licenses amid a DEI probe and political backlash, increasing short-term legal and reputational risk.

The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS - Free Report) - Investment analysts at Erste Group Bank lowered their FY2027 EPS estimates for Walt Disney in a research note issued on Monday, April 27th. Erste Group Bank analyst S. Lingnau now forecasts that the entertainment giant will post earnings per share of $7.31 for the year, down from their prior forecast of $7.32. The consensus estimate for Walt Disney's current full-year earnings is $6.61 per share.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 2nd. The entertainment giant reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.06. Walt Disney had a net margin of 12.80% and a return on equity of 8.90%. The business had revenue of $25.98 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.54 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.40 earnings per share. Walt Disney's quarterly revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Walt Disney in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $135.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Walt Disney from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. TD Cowen reaffirmed a "hold" rating and issued a $123.00 price target on shares of Walt Disney in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. UBS Group reaffirmed a "mixed" rating on shares of Walt Disney in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $150.00 to $148.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $133.53.

Walt Disney Trading Down 0.8%

DIS opened at $101.52 on Wednesday. Walt Disney has a 1-year low of $88.56 and a 1-year high of $124.69. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The company has a market cap of $179.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $101.01 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $106.85.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in DIS. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 7.7% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 26,767 shares of the entertainment giant's stock valued at $2,980,000 after buying an additional 1,904 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 31.9% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 5,470 shares of the entertainment giant's stock valued at $678,000 after buying an additional 1,322 shares during the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. grew its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 16.2% during the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 17,955 shares of the entertainment giant's stock valued at $2,227,000 after buying an additional 2,503 shares during the last quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in Walt Disney by 28.6% during the second quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 8,330 shares of the entertainment giant's stock worth $1,033,000 after purchasing an additional 1,855 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ieq Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Walt Disney by 10.8% during the second quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 115,759 shares of the entertainment giant's stock worth $14,355,000 after purchasing an additional 11,304 shares during the last quarter. 65.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Walt Disney News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Walt Disney this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Disney has shelved plans to spin off ESPN and will keep the sports network inside the company, positioning sports as a core part of its streaming strategy — a move that can support long-term subscriber engagement and ad revenue. Disney (DIS) Axes ESPN Spin-Off Plan, Positions Sports at Core of Streaming Future
• Neutral Sentiment: Erste Group trimmed its FY2027 EPS forecast for Disney slightly (from $7.32 to $7.31) — a marginal revision that is unlikely to materially change consensus estimates or near-term valuation on its own.
• Neutral Sentiment: Disney is reorganizing streaming/data teams after the imminent departure of a senior streaming executive; such adjustments can cause short-term disruption but are routine as the company refines its streaming execution. Disney is shaking up its streaming data teams as a top exec leaves. Read the memo.
• Negative Sentiment: The FCC has initiated an early review of ABC's broadcast licenses tied to a probe of Disney’s DEI practices — a regulatory escalation that raises legal and operational risk for Disney’s broadcast operations and could draw prolonged scrutiny. FCC begins review of Disney broadcast licenses years ahead of schedule
• Negative Sentiment: Political backlash over a Jimmy Kimmel monologue — including calls from President Trump for ABC to fire the host — has amplified regulatory and reputational pressure on Disney and appears to be the proximate driver behind heightened FCC attention. This controversy increases short-term headline risk and investor uncertainty. Trump calls for Jimmy Kimmel's immediate firing

About Walt Disney

The Walt Disney Company NYSE: DIS, commonly known as Disney, is a diversified global entertainment and media conglomerate headquartered in Burbank, California. Founded in 1923 by Walt and Roy O. Disney, the company grew from an animation studio into a multi‑national entertainment enterprise known for iconic intellectual property and family‑oriented storytelling. Disney's operations span film and television production, streaming services, theme parks and resorts, consumer products, and live entertainment.

On the content side, Disney produces and distributes feature films and television programming through a portfolio of studios and labels that includes Walt Disney Pictures, Pixar, Marvel Studios, Lucasfilm and 20th Century Studios, along with broadcast and cable networks such as ABC, FX and National Geographic.

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