Change at the top of Disney: D’Amaro new CEO, Wall Street reacts badly

The markets don’t seem to appreciate thechanging of the guardat the top of theDisney: The group announced that the parks directorJosh D’Amaroit’s the new oneCEO. The move ends the internal battle over who will replace the longtime bossBob Iger. D’Amaro, head of the food sectortheme parks(and cruise ships) of Disney, triumphed over the other main candidate, the co-president of Disney EntertainmentDana Waldenin the battle to succeed Bob Iger. The move doesn’t seem to please investors, so much so that aWall Streetthe stock is losing about 1.5%.

D’Amaro’s promotion comes despite the shadow ofBob Chapeka former theme parks chief who was promoted to CEO in 2020 but was removed after less than three years. Like Chapek, D’Amaro is seen by some as lacking solidsrelationships in Hollywood. Disney veteran with28 years of experience54 years of age, the new manager has managed a budget of 60 billion dollars to expand the company’s experiences division, which includestheme parks and cruisesand which represents the main onefinancial engineof the company. Last year, the entire industry brought in $36 billion in revenue and employed 185,000 people across its 12 amusement parks and 57 hotels worldwide.

James Gorman, the former executive chairman of Morgan Stanley who was tapped to lead Disney’s succession process, said D’Amaro has a “keen eye forstrategic growth opportunities” and a “deep passion” for the Disney brand. Iger, who initially planned to retire in 2015 but extended his contract several times and returned as CEO in 2020, said he was “excited about Josh and the company.”

The challenges awaiting the new CEO

Now, explains the Financial Times, the new manager will inherit amedia giantthat has to face thedecline in revenuescoming from traditional cinema and television, the shift in attention towards online rivals such asYouTubeand the threat of further consolidation, given thatNetflixagreed to buy Warner Bros. It’s been a while since 2019, when Disney films grossed13 billion dollarsat the global box office. Then came the pandemic, and the boom instreaming. Since then, thecord cuttingcontinued to erode the traditional television business, and long-formstrikes by screenwriters and actorsof Hollywood have blocked any filming.

The succession and role of Dana Walden

Until recently, the FT recalls, on Wall Street they expected Disney to emulate Netflix and nominate twoco-CEOs: D’Amaro and Walden, 61, known for her deep ties to theHollywood talent community. Walden was nominated insteadpresident and chief creative officerof Disney. He will report directly to D’Amaro.