Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) Stock Rating Reaffirmed as Buy by Needham & Company LLC

Posted by Brenda Bartman on Oct 9th, 2026

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS – Get Free Report)‘s stock had its “buy” rating restated by equities research analysts at Needham & Company LLC in a research note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. They presently have a $125.00 price objective on the entertainment giant’s stock. Needham & Company LLC’s price target suggests a potential upside of 15.68% from the company’s current price.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Truist Financial set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Walt Disney in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Walt Disney from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 19th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating on shares of Walt Disney in a research note on Monday, August 31st. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $120.00 price target on shares of Walt Disney in a research report on Monday, September 28th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $145.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Walt Disney has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $128.06.

Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on Walt Disney

Walt Disney Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DIS traded up $1.04 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $108.06. 7,149,506 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 10,205,846. Walt Disney has a 52 week low of $92.18 and a 52 week high of $117.09. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $105.12 and a 200 day moving average price of $101.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.71 and a quick ratio of 0.65. The company has a market cap of $186.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.28, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.41.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The entertainment giant reported $2.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.20. Walt Disney had a net margin of 8.70% and a return on equity of 9.90%. The business had revenue of $25.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.39 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.61 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. Walt Disney has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.642-6.642 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Walt Disney will post 6.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Walt Disney

In other Walt Disney news, EVP Brent Woodford sold 7,238 shares of Walt Disney stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.31, for a total value of $762,233.78. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 62,323 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,563,235.13. The trade was a 10.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Paul M. Roeder sold 3,596 shares of Walt Disney stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.32, for a total transaction of $382,326.72. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 18,070 shares of company stock worth $1,913,168. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Walt Disney

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of DIS. J. Stern & Co. LLP raised its holdings in Walt Disney by 9,060.1% during the 4th quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP now owns 38,135,363 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $4,338,660,000 after buying an additional 37,719,041 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in Walt Disney during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,386,720,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its holdings in Walt Disney by 37.8% during the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 12,569,185 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $1,429,996,000 after buying an additional 3,450,198 shares during the period. Diamond Hill Capital Management LLC Investment Advisor purchased a new position in Walt Disney during the 2nd quarter valued at about $225,392,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in Walt Disney by 16.2% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 15,106,105 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $1,718,622,000 after acquiring an additional 2,111,189 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.71% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Walt Disney

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

Positive Sentiment: Needham reaffirmed its “buy” rating and set a $125 price target, implying roughly 15.7% upside from the referenced trading level. The bullish view adds support to sentiment as investors assess Disney’s streaming, parks and content businesses.
Positive Sentiment: Disney+ will stream the 2027 Super Bowl, giving the company a major opportunity to collect valuable viewing data, strengthen its advertising business and promote Disney’s streaming platform. Why Disney’s Super Bowl Streaming Plan Is a Bigger Deal Than It Seems
Positive Sentiment: Disney is pitching its Infinity Vision premium large-format cinema system to Paramount, Universal, Lionsgate and Sony. If adopted, the format could give Disney more influence over theatrical presentation and create incremental licensing or participation revenue, although it must compete with IMAX. Walt Disney Unveils Infinity Vision For Big Screen Releases
Positive Sentiment: Theme-park demand appears resilient: Disney World’s premium Lightning Lane passes reportedly sold out ahead of a busy weekend, while higher character-dining and buffet prices indicate continued pricing power. These trends could support parks revenue and margins. Disney World Runs out of Line-Skipping Passes
Neutral Sentiment: Disney’s licensing of content to Netflix signals a more flexible streaming strategy that may improve monetization and reach, but it could also reduce exclusivity for Disney+ content. Disney Is Opening the Door to Netflix
Negative Sentiment: EVP Brent Woodford sold 3,618 DIS shares for approximately $381,000 under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. Because the sale was scheduled in advance and he retains a substantial stake, it is a limited bearish signal rather than evidence of a fundamental change.

About Walt Disney

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The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) is a global entertainment company that develops, produces and distributes branded content across film, television, streaming and other media platforms. Its portfolio includes Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, National Geographic and 20th Century Studios, as well as ABC, Hulu, Disney+ and ESPN. The company also licenses its characters and intellectual property for consumer products, games and other experiences.

Disney operates theme parks, resorts and cruise lines through its Experiences business.