Walt Disney shares close lower on Wednesday, visitors’ temperatures to be checked after parks re-open, Bob Iger says

According to Walt Disney Co’s (DIS) Executive Chairman Bob Iger, people visiting its theme parks may need to have their temperatures checked after the sites are again open for business and restrictions on public gatherings are removed.

Walt Disney shares closed lower for the fifth time in the past ten trading sessions in New York on Wednesday. The stock edged down 0.17% ($0.17) to $101.07, after touching an intraday low at $98.69, or a price level not seen since April 6th ($94.77).

Shares of Walt Disney Company have retreated 30.12% so far in 2020 compared with a 14.88% loss for the benchmark index, S&P 500 (SPX).

In 2019, Walt Disney’s stock went up 31.90%, thus, it outperformed the S&P 500, which registered a 28.88% gain.

“One of the things that we’re discussing already is that in order to return to some semblance of normal, people will have to feel comfortable that they’re safe,” Bob Iger was quoted as saying by Reuters.

“Some of that could come in the form ultimately of a vaccine, but in the absence of that it could come from basically, more scrutiny, more restrictions,” he added.

“Just as we now do bag checks for everybody that goes into our parks, it could be that at some point we add a component of that that takes people’s temperatures, as a for-instance,” Iger also said.

The company operates Walt Disney World located in Florida and Disneyland located in California, along with a number of theme parks in France, China, Japan and Hong Kong, all closed at present due to pandemic.

Analyst stock price forecast and recommendation

According to CNN Money, the 24 analysts, offering 12-month forecasts regarding Walt Disney’s stock price, have a median target of $133.50, with a high estimate of $175.00 and a low estimate of $100.00. The median estimate represents a 32.09% upside compared to the closing price of $101.07 on April 8th.

The same media also reported that at least 18 out of 27 surveyed investment analysts had rated Walt Disney’s stock as “Buy”, while 7 – as “Hold”.