WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
  • Disney is reportedly preparing thousands of job cuts as some managers target 20% in annual cost savings.
  • Disney employed 231,000 people worldwide at the end of fiscal 2025, making a 2% reduction equal to roughly 4,600 positions.
  • The stock closed at $113.11, 44% below its March 2021 record, while the S&P 500 gained 97% over the same period.
  • Disney plans to reinvest some savings in programming, technology, theme parks and cruise ship businesses.

Disney is preparing thousands of job cuts as managers confront targets calling for 20% in annual cost savings, Bloomberg stated, citing people familiar with the matter. The reductions could include eliminated positions and other expense cuts, with some operations expected to bear a disproportionate share, as reported by Zero Hedge.

The report arrives before Disney releases fiscal Q4 results on Nov. 17. The company has promised investors double-digit growth in adjusted EPS during the current fiscal year, making another sweeping cost campaign a familiar part of its financial playbook.

This would hardly be Disney’s first encounter with the corporate axe. The company has endured at least six rounds of layoffs across three years and two CEOs, while its stock has remained trapped in a prolonged slump.

Disney selected parks boss Josh D’Amaro to replace Bob Iger in February, when the shares were already stuck in a trough that began in 2022. By April, about 1,000 marketing employees were reportedly on D’Amaro’s first chopping block, but the latest plan appears considerably larger.

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Disney shares closed Monday at $113.11 and rose about 0.3% after hours. That closing price was 44% below the March 2021 record close of $201.91, while the S&P 500 had gained 97% over the same period.

The stock was trading around levels last seen in early 2019. Neither Iger’s November 2022 return, his early 2023 plan to eliminate 7,000 jobs and save $5.5 billion, nor D’Amaro’s appointment produced a lasting turnaround for the shares.

Disney has already removed thousands of positions and cut billions of dollars in costs in recent years, according to Bloomberg. The reductions have reached ABC, Pixar, ESPN, the film studio and the experiences unit, turning layoffs into a recurring feature across the company.

ABC News and Disney Entertainment Networks cut 6% of their employees on March 5, 2025, followed by another round in June 2025. On Oct. 1, The Wall Street Journal reported that Disney planned to restructure its television division and cut jobs in its legal and global affairs unit.

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The Wall Street Journal also said in April that Disney had been working with Bain & Co. consultants on its cost-cutting strategy. Disney declined to comment on Bloomberg’s latest statement, leaving the scale and distribution of the expected reductions undisclosed.

Disney had 231,000 employees worldwide at the end of fiscal 2025. A 2% reduction would equal roughly 4,600 positions, although the reported 20% savings target applies only to some managers and includes expenses beyond labor.

D’Amaro intends to reinvest part of the savings in film and television programming, technology, theme parks and cruise ship businesses. Disney is already pursuing a $60 billion investment initiative spanning a decade across its parks and cruise operations.

Goldman Sachs analyst Michael Ng reiterated a Buy rating before the results and projected fiscal Q4 EPS of $1.73, compared with the $1.66 consensus. He forecast revenue of $25.4 billion and segment EBIT of $4.93 billion, both above consensus and helped by a 53rd week.

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Ng increased his fiscal 2027 EPS estimate to $7.56, largely because of lower taxes rather than stronger operations. He also reduced his 12-month price target to $140 from $144 while identifying streaming advertising softness, higher content investment and weaker attendance at Asian parks as pressures.

The parks business has also displayed warning signs. During Disney’s fiscal Q3 call in August, D’Amaro said domestic parks remained healthy and per capita spending increased 4%, but management identified weaker consumer conditions at the Shanghai and Hong Kong parks.

Disney reported adjusted EPS of $2.06 for that quarter, above the expected $1.86. Meanwhile, Goldman’s Orlando tourism tracker showed airport arrivals falling 7% from the previous year in August, raising another uncomfortable question about demand around Disney’s domestic parks.

Streaming customers have faced steadily rising prices as Disney searches for growth. A Disney+ plan without advertisements rose by $3 to $18.99 per month in September 2025, and another reported increase of 13% brought the monthly price to $21.49 in September 2026.

Disney President Dana Walden described the company’s challenge at Bloomberg’s Screentime conference: “There is a need to constantly evaluate how you're structured and how big is the organization. Technology set their sights on our business, and we must survive and thrive and grow, and that's what we're going to do.”

Wall Street has not abandoned the stock. Wells Fargo analyst Steven Cahall upgraded Disney to Overweight with a $132 target, while Guggenheim analyst Michael Morris maintained a Buy rating with a $120 target.

Using Goldman’s fiscal 2027 EPS estimate, Disney trades at roughly 15 times forward earnings. Yet the stock has appeared inexpensive for much of the past four years, and repeated cost cuts have done little to restore its former market standing.

D’Amaro’s approach resembles Iger’s strategy: reduce costs, consolidate operations, reinvest in parks and promise double-digit EPS growth. Disney’s Nov. 17 results may reveal how much of the reported 20% savings target is already reflected in the company’s guidance and how many more workers could pay the price.

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