Walt Disney (DIS) is the Biggest Beneficiary of Pro Sports Returning - Needham

Needham & Company analyst Laura Martin reiterated a Hold rating on Walt Disney (NYSE: DIS) noting that seven pro sports leagues plan to return to play before Aug 15. At $5.8B in 2019, DIS/ABC/ESPN paid the most for live sports media rights, by a wide margin. In 2019, rights fees for live sports represented 52% of ESPN's total costs and 10% of DIS's total expenses. DIS pays the NFL $1.9B/year and the NBA $1.4B/year so these two leagues together are 57% of DIS's sports rights payments and key value upside drivers.

The analyst stated "Because many of DIS's other business segments are paused during COVID-19 (ie, theme parks, cruise ships, film releases, etc) we believe DIS is the biggest beneficiary of live sports returning to TV".

For an analyst ratings summary and ratings history on Walt Disney click here. For more ratings news on Walt Disney click here.

Shares of Walt Disney closed at $119.00 yesterday.

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