Wall Street sees more upside ahead for Walt Disney after the entertainment giant’s fiscal fourth-quarter report due Thursday before market open. Disney shares have taken a backseat to the broader market rally this year, up about 5% year to date. Investors will be watching the report for any signs of a turnaround at its experiences unit and continued growth at its streaming businesses. In its fiscal third quarter, Disney’s earnings topped estimates, helped by streaming growth, anchored by its flagship Disney+ service, and higher consumer spending at its theme parks. However, revenue came up short. Several analysts are optimistic about Disney’s projected earnings growth heading into fiscal year 2026. Analysts remain bullish on the stock with a consensus price target of $134.58, which suggests shares could see 16% upside ahead, per LSEG. Of the 35 analysts covering the stock, 19 rate it a buy and 10 give it a strong buy rating. Five analysts have a hold rating on shares, and one analyst rates it underperform. One analyst from Bernstein, Laurent Yoon, told clients that Disney stock is a buying opportunity for value-oriented investors given that shares are trading at a significant discount to the broader market. He noted that Disney shares have been range-bound between roughly $80 and $120 over the past three years even though the company has continued to grow earnings and should do so again in fiscal years 2025 and 2026. “Despite the complex narrative — [direct-to-consumer subscriber] growth, DTC margin recovery, ESPN-driven churn reduction, and Parks cyclicality — the underlying earnings power remains solid,” Yoon wrote in a Wednesday note to clients. Take a look at what else top names on the Street are saying about Disney: Wells Fargo: Overweight rating, $159 price target Analyst Steven Cahall resumed coverage of Disney with an overweight rating in early October. Any clarity on Disney’s management succession plan could be the “final critical item for long-term investors on the sidelines,” he said. “We think DIS’s assets are growing + maturing, creating more predictability in EPS upside that will engender a rerating. We expect solid execution and a near-term conclusion on succession,” Cahall said in an Oct. 6 note to clients. “We’re most bullish on Experiences: in FY27E, we think it’ll be 55% of OI and the #1 source of upside for the medium term.” Bernstein: Outperform rating, $129 price target Yoon’s price target, which is below the consensus average price target from analysts polled by LSEG, suggests Disney shares have 12.3% potential upside. “What’s clear now is that the valuation gap versus the market has widened even as EPS has continued to outpace the market in recent years. We see potential to narrow this gap heading into FY26 but management will need to address investor debates to build confidence around the “three-body problem” Disney continues to manage,” Yoon said in his Wednesday note, referring to Disney’s parks, direct-to-consumer streaming and linear networks businesses. Morgan Stanley: Overweight rating, $140 price target Morgan Stanley is notably bullish on Disney’s experiences business, as the firm believes the growing presence of artificial intelligence can boost demand for premium live experiences. “Our OW thesis for DIS shares reflects the view that Disney’s portfolio of iconic brands and franchises can be monetized at a level that delivers double-digit compounding earnings growth for years to come. In our view, this durable long-term growth is not reflected in shares,” analyst Benjamin Swinburne wrote in a Sunday note to clients. “We forecast accelerating revenue growth at Experiences and streaming (DTC), pushing their combined earnings contribution to a new high of 70%.” Bank of America: Buy rating, $140 price target Bank of America believes that any update to Disney’s fiscal year 2026 guidance will be a “key driver of stock performance.” It sees upside potential being driven by Disney’s experiences businesses as it launches two new cruise ships and expects growth in parks during the fiscal year. “We project F4Q will reflect stable underlying trends in Experiences and a profitability inflection in streaming … In Experiences, the launch of DIS’ new cruise ship, the Disney Adventure, has been delayed from December 2025 until March 2026. Despite this, we remain bullish on the longer-term opportunity in Experiences, with cruise ships in particular, driving a multiyear growth opportunity. In advertising, Sports is a bright sport and continues to see strength relative to other categories, and the initial rollout of ESPN’s new DTC services appears to be positive,” analyst Jessica Reif Ehrlich wrote in a Sept. 30 note to clients. Evercore ISI: Outperform rating, $140 price target Analyst Kutgun Maral sees an attractive setup ahead for Disney’s experiences unit, similar to other analysts. “We remain bullish heading into Disney’s 4Q FY25 print, where we expect another healthy quarter across both Experiences and DTC, alongside encouraging commentary on early contributions from the new ESPN streaming service,” Maral wrote in a Tuesday note. “We also anticipate management will guide to double-digit adj. EPS growth for both FY26 and FY27, with the setup for FY26 looking particularly attractive given accelerating profitability across Experiences (new cruise ships, lapping last year’s hurricane headwinds, and continued underlying momentum), DTC (streaming price increases, integration of Hulu and Disney+ tech stacks, and improved traction from the broader bundle now including ESPN), and CSLO (which we expect to post its strongest theatrical year since FY19), as well as the benefit of an extra week.”
