Why Is Walt Disney Stock Falling Thursday? - Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS)

Why is Walt Disney stock falling Thursday? Investors weighed a European patent ruling, renewed calls for corporate restructuring, and fresh regulatory uncertainty around Disney’s media business. The Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) traded lower Thursday as the Nasdaq fell 2.06% and the S&P 500 declined 1.41%. A European ruling confirmed the validity of a patent covering High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) video encoding technology across 11 EU countries; Disney can appeal. InterDigital’s chief legal officer Josh Schmidt said HEVC encoding is key to delivering high-quality viewing experiences used to support higher subscription prices. Separately, Ross Gerber, CEO of Gerber Kawasaki, renewed calls for changes to Disney’s management and structure, and he said Apple should acquire Disney or the company should exit entertainment. Analysts cited possible asset value, including Wells Fargo’s view that Disney could unlock about 40% upside by exiting streaming and returning to legacy content licensing. The article also noted technical weakness, with shares trading below key moving averages and next earnings scheduled for Aug. 5.