Disney Has To Face Investors This Week, and It’s Not Going To Be Good

Disney Has To Face Investors This Week, and It’s Not Going To Be Good - Inside the Magic

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Disney Has To Face Investors This Week, and It’s Not Going To Be Good

in Disney Parks, Movies & TV

Posted on November 10, 2024 by Rick Lye

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A man smiles broadly while standing in front of a castle and a statue of a man holding hands with a mouse character, iconic symbols of the Disney Company. The image is in black and white, and the atmosphere appears slightly foggy.

Credit: Disney

Think what you will of Disney CEO Bob Iger; even his harshest critics have to agree that he’s not a stupid man. Iger knows that if you deliver bad news, you better have some good news coming with it.

A man with gray hair and a light smile stands with his arms crossed in front of the Statue of Liberty and the New York city skyline on a sunny day with a clear blue sky. He is wearing a white shirt and a black sweater. — Credit: Inside the Magic

Like Walt Disney before him, Iger knows that a bit of sleight of hand can go a long way in distracting the public. Iger knows that Disney’s stock has been below $100 since this summer, and it was time to distract shareholders a little with a glimpse into Disney’s future.

So, Iger delivered the good news for The Walt Disney Company this weekend. At Disney’s D23 Expo in Brazil, Iger unveiled trailers for Moana 2 (2024), Captain America: Brave New World (2025), and Marvel’s Thunderbolts (2025).

Josh D’Amaro also updated the expansion projects at the Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, and Hollywood Studios, including details about the fan-favorite Villians Land.

The first image Disney shared of the new Villains Land coming to the Magic Kingdom — Credit: Disney

That was the good news. This means that there will be some bad news this week when Bob Iger meets shareholders at Disney’s quarterly earnings report.

What’s Iger Going to Say

The worst news that Iger will have to deliver to shareholders will be from the parks division. Reports have been circulating that attendance is down across all Disney Parks worldwide, especially at the Walt Disney World Resort.

Disney will not release exact figures for just how low the attendance at Disney World is, but the park division will post lower-than-expected revenues, which should give shareholders some idea.

Bob Iger looking troubled against Disney World Castle, which is under a rainbow. — Credit: Inside the Magic

Disney Park division will still make money; however, that will come from charging fewer guests more money rather than an increase in attendance. Iger will also have to answer questions about how Disney World will respond to Epic Universe’s opening in 2025.

Iger has said that he believes Epic Universe’s opening will help Disney World, but with nothing new coming to Disney World in the near future, his prediction won’t come true.

Iger will have two billion-dollar films to brag about in Inside Out 2 (2024) and Deadpool & Wolverine (2024), but Disney is still recovering from its disastrous 2022 and 2023. Iger will also have to show more significant gains on Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+.

Bob Iger and Bob Chapek in front of the Millennium Falcon in Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge — Credit: Disney

The looming question over The Walt Disney Company is, who will replace Bob Iger? Disney announced that it would have his replacement ready by 2026.

That might not be soon enough for concerned investors who don’t see a strategy beyond Iger. None of the internal candidates have that something that Iger has, and investors are looking to avoid another Bob Chapek-esque disaster.

So, while Iger has worked his sleight of hand, he may have played all his cards at D23.

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