Disney Stock Surges As Bob Iger Returns As CEO

Shares of Walt Disney (DIS:US) gapped almost 10% higher to start the new week after the company announced a leadership change.

Disney announced that Bob Iger is returning to the company to replace Bob Chapek as Chief Executive. Iger spent over 40 years at Disney, including a 15-year spell as CEO. He has been widely credited for promoting Disney into an entertainment giant.

Hence, it comes as no surprise that Disney shares reacted positively to the news. According to Wells Fargo analyst Steven Cahall, Disney got “perhaps the best leader in Media at the helm with a mandate to shake things up.”

Iger replaces Chapek, who was under fire recently for several reasons, including the underperformance of Disney stock, which fell to multi-year lows recently before rebounding to trade near $100 a share. 

Congressman Ro Khanna was actively trading Disney shares in September and October, according to Capitol Trades data. The Californian Representative majorly traded in DIS shares throughout the year at prices comfortably above $100 per share. A few days ago, Mr. Khanna disclosed he sold some Disney shares on the day when the stock closed at $98.59.

Although Mr. Khanna usually trades in smaller sizes, some of his investments in Disney were valued between $15,000 and $50,000.

In addition to Rep. Khanna, Congresswoman Diana Harshbarger reported 11 purchases of Disney stock this year. All of these trades were between $1,000 and $15,000 with Rep. Harshbarger paying between $91.84 and $103.35 for each Disney share.