Disney's Stock Sees Record High Following Disney+ Launch (UPDATE)

UPDATE (November 14,2019, 12:00:00 PM EST): Following the announcement that Disney‘s streaming service Disney+ received over 10 million subscribers in just one day, the company’s stock saw its biggest one-day gain since April and an all-time high since January 1972. As of this morning, Disney gained 7.3 percent, culminating to $148.72 USD per share. According to Market Watch, Disney’s shares are up 32 percent this year.

Dan Ives from investment firm Wedbush told Market Watch that Disney+’s download rate is “eye popping” and “considerably higher” than expected. It appears as though the initial “unable to connect” error messages many Disney+ users experienced didn’t thwart analyst confidence in Disney after all.

ORIGINAL STORY (November 14,2019, 2:45:00 AM EST): Disney‘s highly-anticipated streaming service Disney+ has surpassed 10 million subscribers just one day after its launch. The entertainment giant announced the news on November 13, with Disney’s stock rising 3% after the announcement. The company, however, did not reveal the number of free-trial sign-ups and confirmed that it will not be releasing Disney+ subscriber data outside of The Walt Disney Company’s quarterly earnings calls.

With analysts initially projecting 17 to 18 million subscribers within the streaming service’s first year, Disney+’s ability to garner more than half of that estimate is an impressive feat. The Disney+ app also rose to the top of the App Store thanks to an ESPN+ and Hulu bundle, totalling to a whopping 3.2 million downloads across Apple and Android devices.

“It’s impossible to compare, with any insight coming from it, first day downloads of Netflix to that of Disney+,” a report from Apptopia states. “Streaming was not what it is today and mobile is not what it is today, as mobile device penetration and user preferences have shifted in Disney’s favor.”

Elsewhere in entertainment, Andy Serkis has been casted to play Alfred Pennyworth in Matt Reeves’ The Batman.