Entertainment giant Disney (DIS) has long had troubles surrounding the costs of its theme parks. In fact, for many customers, a day at Disney is increasingly out of reach. The new Lightning Lane Premier Pass, some thought, might have helped. But as it turns out, it will likely prove less help than hoped. As a result, Disney shares are down fractionally in Thursday afternoon’s trading.
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Reports note that the Lightning Lane Premier Pass will hit Disneyland on October 23rd and Disney World a week later. It is a one-time entry pass for Lightning Lane experiences designed to get customers to more rides more rapidly. However, the price tag for a Lightning Lane Premier Pass might end up doing more damage than good: each pass runs $400 per person per day.
Moreover, that $400 price tag is above the cost of actually getting into the park to begin with. There will be some relief to this in the coming days, reports note, as Lightning Lane passes will have a fluctuating value dependent on a series of factors, including the date and the intended theme park up for a visit. The highest prices will only show up on “peak” travel days, noted an Associated Press report.
Streaming Is Also Going Up
Meanwhile, for those who want to get around the soaring park prices by just staying home and watching Disney+ instead, that will now cost you more. Disney, earlier today, launched a new price hike on its various streaming subscription plans that had been announced over two months ago, back in August.
Most plans will have modest hikes, generally about $1 to $2 per month. However, those wanting the full streaming experience that is Hulu Live TV should be prepared for a much harder hit. That plan goes up $6 per month. It is hardly alone on this front—several of its competitors in the field, like Warner Bros Discovery’s (WBD) Max, have announced price hikes recently—but given the economic conditions, this might well cost it some subscribers.
Is Disney Stock a Buy or Hold?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Strong Buy consensus rating on DIS stock based on 15 Buys and five Holds assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 14.66% rally in its share price over the past year, the average DIS price target of $112.13 per share implies 16.49% upside potential.
