NEW YORK, Jan 2, 2026, 13:19 ET — Regular session
- Walt Disney shares were down about 1.5% in early afternoon trading, broadly tracking a weaker consumer-discretionary sector.
- Disney said “Zootopia 2” is now Walt Disney Animation Studios’ highest-grossing film at roughly $1.46 billion worldwide.
- Investors are watching next week’s U.S. jobs data and Disney’s next dividend installment due Jan. 15.
Walt Disney Co shares fell 1.5% to $112.11 in early afternoon trading on Friday, sliding with broader consumer-discretionary weakness. The stock traded between $111.65 and $113.98 in the session, while the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR ETF was down about 1.1%.
The move comes in the first trading session of 2026, as investors reassess last year’s rally and look for fresh catalysts heading into January’s run of economic data and corporate updates.
Disney sits at the intersection of consumer spending, streaming subscriptions and moviegoing, leaving the shares sensitive to shifts in growth expectations and interest-rate bets.
U.S. stocks were muted around midday, with the Dow up and the S&P 500 and Nasdaq near flat; the S&P 500 and Nasdaq were on track for a fifth straight daily decline. That cooled hopes for a “Santa Claus rally” — a seasonal pattern in which markets often get a lift in late December and the first two sessions of January. “The next Fed Chair is probably going to be much more dovish than Jerome Powell,” Dennis Dick, chief market strategist at Stock Trader Network, told Reuters, using “dovish” to mean more willing to cut rates. Reuters
On the company side, Disney said its animated sequel “Zootopia 2” surpassed 2019’s “Frozen 2” to become Walt Disney Animation Studios’ highest-grossing film, with about $1.46 billion in global ticket sales. The film is the studio’s fifth to cross $1 billion globally and has been a bright spot as the global box office continues to trail pre-pandemic levels. Reuters
The sequel’s run has been fueled by China, where it has grossed more than $560 million, with the film capturing about 95% of all movie ticket sales in its opening weekend there, the report said.
Media peers were also under pressure. Netflix fell about 2.9% and Warner Bros Discovery slipped about 1.2% in early afternoon trade.
Netflix said this week its Christmas Day NFL streams set U.S. viewership records, underscoring how streamers are using marquee sports to drive subscriptions and ad sales. The escalation matters for Disney, which owns ESPN and sells ads across its television and streaming platforms.
Next up, traders are watching next week’s U.S. labor market data for clues on the Fed’s next move. Disney is also set to pay the first $0.75 installment of its cash dividend on Jan. 15, while earnings calendars have the next report penciled in for early February — a date Disney has not confirmed.
For now, Disney’s Friday move looks more like sector positioning than a verdict on its holiday box-office momentum. Investors will be looking for clearer signals on consumer demand and the earnings outlook as 2026 gets underway.
