DIS vs WBD: Disney vs Warner Bros. Discovery Stock Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside
Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery are both legacy media companies navigating the streaming transition, but from very different positions. Disney has the world's strongest entertainment IP, profitable streaming, and high-margin parks; WBD has HBO's content quality but is severely constrained by merger debt and accelerating linear TV decline. Disney is the higher-quality, more resilient franchise; WBD is a deep value and deleveraging turnaround story.
Use this DIS vs WBD comparison to choose between an iconic media compounder with multiple business moats and a deeply discounted media turnaround levered to debt reduction and streaming stabilisation. Disney is the quality holding; WBD is the distressed value bet.
DIS holds the edge across 3 of 5 key metrics in this comparison. WBD has delivered stronger 1-year price return (+101.95% vs -23.32%), though DIS has the better forward P/E setup (13.07x vs 839.69x for WBD). DIS leads on both revenue growth (6.50%) and operating margin (15.51%), suggesting a stronger fundamental setup on both dimensions. Analyst consensus implies meaningfully more upside for DIS (+30.69%) than for WBD (+11.34%).
- →Want the world's most valuable entertainment IP library spanning Marvel, Star Wars, Pixar, and Disney brands
- →Value Disney Parks as a high-margin, recurring revenue engine with strong consumer pricing power
- →Believe Disney+ and Hulu's path to profitability validates the streaming transition investment
- →Prefer a diversified media holding with multiple independent profit streams rather than a single streaming bet
- →Want deep value exposure to a media asset bundle trading at a fraction of the sum of its parts
- →Believe successful debt reduction will unlock significant equity value as the capital structure normalises
- →Value HBO and Max as premium streaming content brands that can sustain differentiated pricing
- →Are comfortable with high risk and a longer recovery timeline in exchange for potential multi-bagger upside if execution succeeds
| Metric | DIS | WBD |
|---|---|---|
| AI score | 40.2 | 44.2 |
| AI rank | #1142 | #826 |
| Latest close | $92.83 | $25.95 |
| 1M return | -10.34% | -3.46% |
| 6M return | -17.99% | -9.04% |
| 1Y return | -23.32% | +101.95% |
How much would $10,000 be worth today if invested at the start of each period, with all dividends reinvested?
| Period | DIS | WBD |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y ago | $7.55K (-24.5%) started 2025-07-23 | $19.5K (+95.0%) started 2025-07-23 |
| 5Y ago | $5.32K (-46.8%) started 2021-07-26 | $8.84K (-11.6%) started 2021-07-26 |
| 10Y ago | $10.84K (+8.4%) started 2016-07-25 | $10.19K (+1.9%) started 2016-07-25 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
| Metric | DIS | WBD |
|---|---|---|
| Market cap | $169.61B | $67.37B |
| Trailing P/E | 15.63 | 93.00 |
| Forward P/E | 13.07 | 839.69 |
| Price/Sales | 2.18 | N/A |
| EV/Revenue | 2.24 | 2.63 |
| Analyst target | $127.64 | $29.92 |
| Target upside | +30.69% | +11.34% |
| Metric | DIS | WBD |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue growth | 6.50% | -1.00% |
| Earnings growth | -29.80% | N/A |
| EPS growth | -29.80% | N/A |
| FCF margin | +3.86% | +49.63% |
| Operating margin | 15.51% | 8.59% |
| Profit margin | 11.54% | -4.67% |
| ROIC proxy | 11.01% | -4.96% |
| Return on equity | 11.01% | -4.96% |
| Dividend yield | 1.54% | N/A |
| Beta | 1.40 | 1.55 |
| Debt/equity | 41.07 | 96.32 |
| Current ratio | 0.68 | 0.73 |
| Quick ratio | 0.55 | 0.41 |
Lower drawdown and smaller single-period drops generally indicate a smoother ride, though they do not guarantee lower future risk.
| Period | Metric | DIS | WBD |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Y | Growth | -24.49% | +94.97% |
| CAGR | -24.52% | +95.15% | |
| Sharpe ratio | -1.17 | 1.58 | |
| Max drawdown | 24.83% | 21.31% | |
| Max daily drop | 7.75% | 8.01% | |
| Max wkly drop | 10.27% | 15.78% | |
| 5Y | Growth | -47.42% | -11.55% |
| CAGR | -12.08% | -2.43% | |
| Sharpe ratio | -0.45 | 0.13 | |
| Max drawdown | 57.33% | 78.48% | |
| Max daily drop | 13.16% | 19.04% | |
| Max wkly drop | 16.34% | 24.68% | |
| 10Y | Growth | +1.54% | +1.92% |
| CAGR | +0.15% | +0.19% | |
| Sharpe ratio | -0.01 | 0.14 | |
| Max drawdown | 60.72% | 91.32% | |
| Max daily drop | 13.16% | 27.45% | |
| Max wkly drop | 19.45% | 45.77% |
| Category | DIS | WBD |
|---|---|---|
| Company | The Walt Disney Company | Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. |
| Sector | Communication Services | Communication Services |
| Industry | Entertainment | N/A |
| Core business | Global entertainment conglomerate. Disney+ and Hulu are the streaming platforms. Disney Parks, Experiences & Products generates the highest segment operating income. Studio Entertainment produces film and TV content. ESPN is a major sports media asset with plans for a DTC ESPN streaming service. | Media company formed from the Discovery-WarnerMedia merger in 2022. Max (formerly HBO Max) is the streaming platform. Networks include CNN, TNT, TBS, Discovery, HGTV, and Food Network. Studios produce Warner Bros. films and TV content. Sports rights include March Madness and NBA (transitioning). |
| Investor focus | Disney+ and Hulu profitability, parks demand durability, ESPN DTC transition, content quality and pipeline, and operating leverage as streaming scales. | Debt reduction from the merger leverage, Max streaming subscriber and ARPU growth, linear network decline management, NBA rights transition, and free cash flow generation. |
- →Unrivalled IP library — Marvel, Star Wars, Pixar, Disney Animation, and National Geographic are global brands with multi-decade staying power
- →Parks are a capital-efficient recurring revenue machine — Disney theme parks generate very high margins with strong pricing power
- →Disney+ achieved profitability faster than expected, validating the streaming transition investment
- →HBO and Max have the highest quality streaming content reputation — a differentiated brand in a crowded field
- →Discovery networks (HGTV, Food Network, Discovery) are high-margin, low-cost content businesses
- →Heavy debt burden creates enormous upside leverage if management successfully deleverages while stabilising revenue
- →ESPN cable linear decline is ongoing — the DTC ESPN streaming transition must happen fast enough to offset cord-cutting
- →Content quality consistency is critical — franchise fatigue (Marvel, Star Wars) can erode subscriber engagement
- →Parks demand is cyclical and sensitive to consumer spending — an economic slowdown would pressure the highest-margin segment
- →Very high debt from the Discovery-WarnerMedia merger constrains investment flexibility and creates financial risk
- →Linear cable network revenue is declining rapidly — CNN, TNT, TBS are losing subscribers and advertising
- →NBA rights transition — Warner Bros. lost primary NBA rights to Amazon, materially impacting sports content strategy
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