Disney (DIS) Stock News Today, November 30, 2025: Q4 Earnings, Dividend Revival, YouTube TV Deal and New Legal Risks

Walt Disney Company stock is ending November in a strange middle ground: trading around $104–105 per share, comfortably above its 2025 lows but still around 16% below its 52‑week high of $124.69 set in June. ^[1]

Behind that middling share price is anything but a middling story. In the past few weeks, Disney has:

Reported fourth‑quarter and full‑year fiscal 2025 earnings
Announced a $1.50 per-share cash dividend and bigger buybacks ^[2]
Ended a high‑stakes YouTube TV blackout that was costing millions per day ^[3]
Faced patent injunctions in Germany and Brazil tied to its streaming tech ^[4]
Continued major expansion in parks and cruises, including the new Disney Destiny ship and an Abu Dhabi theme park. ^[5]

Here’s a detailed look at everything that matters for Disney (DIS) stock as of November 30, 2025.

1. Where Disney stock stands right now

As of the last trading day before November 30 (Friday, November 28):

Closing price: $104.47, up 1.01% on the day
Third straight daily gain for the stock
Still about 16% below its 52‑week high of $124.69
Trading volume (about 6.5 million shares) well below the 50‑day average of ~10.2 million shares. ^[6]

On basic valuation metrics:

Market cap: roughly $185–186 billion ^[7]
Trailing P/E: about 15–16× earnings
PEG ratio: around 1.4–1.5, implying growth expectations that are solid but not euphoric ^[8]
Beta: ~1.5 – more volatile than the overall market ^[9]

Balance-sheet health looks decent for a legacy media giant:

Debt‑to‑equity: ~0.32
Quick ratio: ~0.66
Current ratio: ~0.72 ^[10]

Over the last 12 months, Disney shares are down around high single digits to low double digits, underperforming broad indices but off their worst levels from 2023–24. ^[11]

In plain English: DIS is priced like a cautious turnaround, not a broken company or a high-flying growth stock.

2. Q4 FY25 earnings: strong year, messy quarter

Disney reported fourth‑quarter and full‑year fiscal 2025 results on November 13. ^[12]

Top line and earnings

For the quarter ended September 27, 2025:

Revenue: $22.5 billion, essentially flat versus the same quarter in 2024
Income before income taxes: jumped to $2.0 billion from $0.9 billion
Total segment operating income:$3.5 billion, down 5% year over year
GAAP EPS:$0.73, nearly tripling from $0.25 a year ago
Adjusted EPS:$1.11, down 3% from $1.14 in Q4 FY24 ^[13]

For full‑year fiscal 2025:

Revenue:$94.4 billion, up 3% from $91.4 billion in 2024
Income before income taxes:$12.0 billion, up 59%
Total segment operating income:$17.6 billion, up 12%
GAAP EPS:$6.85, more than doubling from $2.72
Adjusted EPS:$5.93, up 19% from $4.97 ^[14]

So why did the stock fall nearly 8% on earnings day? Because the headline numbers were lumpy:

Quarterly revenue was essentially flat and a touch light versus some expectations
Segment operating income declined in Q4, even after a strong full year
Guidance for Q1 FY26 pointed to tough comparisons in entertainment and political advertising. ^[15]

Segment story: Experiences and streaming vs. old media

Disney today is really three big economic engines: Experiences, Entertainment (including streaming), and Sports.

Experiences (Parks, Resorts & Cruises)

Delivered record full‑year operating income of $10.0 billion
Q4 Experiences operating income hit $1.9 billion, up $219 million year over year
Domestic parks & experiences operating income grew 9% to about $920 million in Q4
International parks grew even faster, up 25% to $375 million. ^[16]
Disney disclosed that 2025 park attendance was down about 1%, but guest spending per visitor rose about 3% – classic “fewer people, higher pricing” dynamics. ^[17]

Entertainment (Film, TV, and Streaming)

Full‑year Entertainment segment operating income rose 19% to $4.7 billion
Q4 Entertainment income, however, fell by roughly $376 million versus the prior year, mostly because 2024’s Q4 had monster theatrical hits like Inside Out 2 and Deadpool & Wolverine that were hard to match. ^[18]

The bright spot: Direct‑to‑consumer (DTC) streaming.

DTC revenue grew 8% in Q4
DTC operating income improved by $99 million to $352 million, marking another profitable quarter for Disney’s streaming business
Combined Disney+ and Hulu subscriptions reached about 196 million, with 132 million Disney+ subs alone, both higher than in Q3. ^[19]

Streaming profitability is hugely important: Disney had previously promised to get its streaming business to break‑even and beyond, and now it’s actually delivering on that goal.

Sports (ESPN and related)

Q4 Sports segment operating income was $911 million, down modestly (~$18 million) from the prior year
Domestic ESPN operating income slipped about 3% as higher programming and production costs offset stronger advertising and subscriber revenues. ^[20]

The theme here: Parks and streaming are pulling their weight; legacy TV and film are still dragging.

3. The YouTube TV blackout: costly drama, quick truce

One of the biggest overhangs in November was the Disney–YouTube TV carriage dispute.

On October 30, 2025, YouTube TV pulled Disney‑owned networks including ABC and ESPN, triggering a blackout for millions of subscribers. ^[21]
Analysts at Morgan Stanley estimated the blackout cost Disney about $30 million per week, or roughly $4.3 million per day in lost distribution revenue. ^[22]

Disney warned that the dispute could be lengthy, but the pain was mutual: sports fans were furious, and cord‑cutters had limited patience for missing NFL and college football. ^[23]

In the end, the standoff lasted a little over two weeks:

On November 14, 2025, Disney and YouTube TV announced a new multi‑year distribution agreement
Channels like ABC and ESPN returned to YouTube TV’s base package, ending the blackout. ^[24]

Financially, the damage looks manageable:

Roughly $60 million in lost revenue if you assume a 14‑day blackout
That’s a noticeable hit, but not thesis‑breaking for a company with nearly $95 billion in annual revenue. ^[25]

Strategically, though, it’s a reminder that distribution leverage has shifted. Big tech platforms like YouTube TV have more bargaining power than traditional cable carriers did, and every renewal is a potential fight over economics and who “owns” the customer.

4. Dividend revival and a more shareholder-friendly Disney

For income‑oriented investors, one of the most important headlines this month didn’t involve streaming at all: it involved cash.

On November 13, 2025, Disney’s board declared a cash dividend of $1.50 per share, to be paid in two installments: ^[26]

$0.75 per share on January 15, 2026, to shareholders of record as of December 15, 2025
$0.75 per share on July 22, 2026, to shareholders of record as of June 30, 2026

At a share price around $104–105, that works out to a forward dividend yield of roughly 1.4% – small, but symbolically important after years of dividend disruption.

On top of that, Disney plans to:

Double its share‑repurchase target to $7 billion in fiscal 2026
Generate about $19 billion in cash from operations and spend about $9 billion on capex, leaving room for buybacks and dividends. ^[27]

Guidance calls for:

Double‑digit adjusted EPS growth in FY26
Another year of double‑digit EPS growth in FY27, on top of the FY26 base. ^[28]

Put together, the message is clear: Disney is shifting from pure “fix the business” mode toward “return more cash to shareholders” mode.

5. Parks, cruises and Abu Dhabi: the growth engine gets bigger

The Experiences segment (parks, resorts and cruises) is now the company’s profit engine, and Disney is leaning in hard.

Key expansion themes:

Disney says it has expansion projects underway at every one of its theme parks. ^[29]
The company plans five additional cruise ships beyond fiscal 2026, extending a fleet that’s already drawing rave reviews. ^[30]
In Abu Dhabi, Disney and Miral are building a landmark Disney theme park resort on Yas Island, the company’s first park in the Middle East and its first major new park in nearly a decade. ^[31]

On the cruise side:

The Disney Destiny – the newest ship – recently launched from Port Everglades in Florida, with Disney highlighting its Marvel‑themed “Tower Suite” and an on‑board Haunted Mansion Parlor that can host weddings starting in 2026. ^[32]
The Disney Adventure, based out of Singapore, is positioned to open up Southeast Asia as a cruise market for the brand. ^[33]

In Europe, Disneyland Paris is preparing to open its massive “World of Frozen” expansion in March 2026, another example of Disney adding capacity to high‑margin park experiences. ^[34]

Behind the scenes, a $170 million bond sale tied to Walt Disney World infrastructure underscores how much long‑term capital is being plowed into park‑adjacent projects. ^[35]

For DIS holders, the takeaway is straightforward: Experiences is a capital‑intensive, but very high‑return growth engine, and Disney is betting big that the appetite for premium parks and cruises will hold up despite macro uncertainty.

6. New legal and regulatory overhangs: patents, AI and politics

InterDigital patent injunctions

In November, InterDigital, a wireless and video technology company, announced multiple legal wins against Disney:

On November 3, InterDigital said a Munich court granted an injunction over a patent related to dynamically overlaying one video stream over another (for example, subtitles). ^[36]
On November 24, the same court granted another injunction over a patent tied to HDR video streaming technology used in services like Disney+. ^[37]
InterDigital also highlighted preliminary injunctions in Brazil, where a court found Disney infringed both patents in suit. ^[38]

Disney can appeal, and there’s been no public sign of immediate Disney+ or Hulu shutdowns in the affected markets. But the rulings increase pressure on Disney to settle or license InterDigital’s tech, potentially at higher cost, and they add a fresh layer of legal risk around streaming.

Cracking down on AI use of Disney IP

Separately, Disney has been aggressively policing AI usage of its characters:

On September 30, 2025, Reuters reported that Disney sent a cease‑and‑desist letter to Character.AI, demanding it stop unauthorized use of Disney characters on its chatbot platform. ^[39]
The letter cited concerns that user‑created bots were “weaponizing” beloved characters in ways that could damage the brand. It followed earlier lawsuits against Chinese AI firm MiniMax and Midjourney over alleged copyright infringement. ^[40]

For investors, this is less about immediate financial impact and more about protecting the core IP moat that underpins Disney’s long‑term value.

Political noise around ABC

Disney also found itself in the crosshairs of U.S. politics again:

On November 18, 2025, former President Donald Trump called for broadcast licenses used by Disney‑owned ABC affiliates to be “taken away”, after objecting to an ABC reporter’s question about Jeffrey Epstein records. ^[41]
A Democratic FCC commissioner quickly responded that such a move would be unconstitutional and “would fail in court,” stressing that the FCC doesn’t punish networks for their journalism and hasn’t revoked a station license in decades. ^[42]

The regulatory risk here looks low, but the headline risk is real, especially for ABC News and Disney’s public image.

7. Wall Street’s view: cautious optimism

Analyst and institutional sentiment toward Disney is mixed, but generally positive.

Analyst ratings and price targets

MarketBeat tracks 27 Wall Street analysts on Disney, with a “Moderate Buy” consensus:
- 18 Buy
- 8 Hold
- 1 Sell
- Average price target: about $133–134 per share. ^[43]
StockAnalysis aggregates a slightly different sample and classifies the average rating as “Strong Buy”, with a consensus target near $135, implying close to 30% upside from around $104. ^[44]
Recent moves include:
- Evercore ISI nudging its target up to $142 while keeping a Buy rating
- Needham reiterating a Strong Buy with a $125 target
- TD Cowen staying at Hold with a $123 target. TS2 Tech
Bernstein recently affirmed an Outperform rating with a $129 target after the earnings release. ^[45]

In short, most analysts see upside, but not everyone is ready to pound the table after the November sell‑off.

Institutional buying and short interest

Institutional ownership remains high:

Roughly 65–66% of DIS shares are held by institutional investors and hedge funds. ^[46]
Vanguard Group alone owns about 156 million shares, having added over 2.4 million shares in the most recent quarter. ^[47]
Recent 13F‑style disclosures show large funds like New York State Common Retirement Fund and First National Advisers LLC increasing their positions, even as smaller managers like Virtue Capital Management trim holdings. ^[48]

Short sellers are present but not dominant:

Short interest is about 1.1% of float, with a days‑to‑cover ratio near 1.4 – low by market standards, although slightly higher than the prior period. TS2 Tech

That mix – institutional net buying, modest short interest, and moderate‑to‑strong buy ratings – fits a narrative of cautious long‑term optimism.

8. Valuation snapshot: is DIS cheap or fairly priced?

At roughly $104–105 a share, Disney trades at:

~15–16× trailing earnings
A forward multiple that many analysts consider reasonable given the company’s guidance for double‑digit EPS growth in FY26 and FY27. ^[49]

Independent valuation work:

Simply Wall St, which uses discounted cash flow‑style modeling, pegs Disney’s “fair value” around $133 per share, implying roughly 30% upside from recent prices, assuming around 4% annual revenue growth and incremental margin improvements. ^[50]

Another way to think about it:

Experiences looks like a premium industrial/consumer business, deserving a healthy multiple
Streaming is now profitable and growing, but still subject to intense competition and content spending cycles
Legacy film and TV remain the problem child, dragging on the consolidated valuation

The market seems to be pricing Disney as a solid but not explosive compounder, implicitly waiting to see whether streaming profitability and Experiences growth can more than offset linear TV decay and legal/regulatory noise.

9. Key risks and what to watch next

For investors tracking DIS after November 30, 2025, a few themes stand out:

Streaming profitability and subscriber trends
- Can Disney+ and Hulu remain profitable while still growing subs and investing heavily in content?
- Patent disputes like those with InterDigital may raise licensing costs at the margin. ^[51]
Experiences resilience in a choppy macro
- Parks and cruises are delivering record operating income, but a sharper consumer slowdown could hit attendance or onboard spending. ^[52]
Linear TV and political pressure
- ESPN’s economics depend on sports rights and affiliate fees in a world where cord‑cutting and carriage disputes (e.g., YouTube TV) are the new normal. ^[53]
- ABC and Disney more broadly are likely to remain lightning rods in U.S. politics, but regulators have limited appetite and ability to weaponize broadcast licensing. ^[54]
Execution on mega‑projects
- The Abu Dhabi park, new ships like Destiny and Adventure, and big expansions in Paris and Florida will require years of capital and flawless execution to hit their return targets. ^[55]
Capital allocation discipline
- Disney is now balancing $24 billion in annual content investment, big park and cruise capex, a restored dividend, and $7 billion in planned buybacks. The payoff depends on management sticking to its EPS and free‑cash‑flow targets without overreaching. ^[56]

10. Bottom line on Disney stock as of November 30, 2025

As we close out November:

The business is clearly healthier than it was a couple of years ago: streaming is profitable, Experiences are hitting record profits, and leverage is contained. ^[57]
The stock is not priced like a fairy tale – mid‑teens earnings multiple, modest dividend yield, and a history of recent underperformance leave room for upside if management’s growth story plays out. ^[58]
At the same time, legal fights, distribution battles, and political theatrics keep injecting uncertainty into the narrative, which helps explain why many investors are constructive but not euphoric. ^[59]

For now, Disney (DIS) looks like a classic turnaround‑plus‑growth story: not risk‑free, but increasingly supported by cash‑generating parks and a streaming division that’s finally doing what it was supposed to do—make money, not just headlines.

Disney's Dividend Boost and Buyback Plan: Streaming and Parks Drive Profit