Jason Bazinet, a Citigroup analyst, suggested that as part of the sale of its 67% investment in Hulu, Disney would be able to acquire the rights to Comcast-owned Marvel characters like Hulk and Namor.
The Wall Street analyst, who has a “buy” rating on Disney stock, told The Wrap that the studio’s most recent financial performance gave him reason to think it might be considering selling Hulu.
After the FY1Q23 results, the analyst stated: “We believe the company is less interested in a mass-market DTC product. This increases the likelihood that Disney will sell its Hulu equity.
In accordance with a 2019 agreement, Comcast can demand that Disney purchase its remaining 33% ownership in Hulu as early as January 2024.
But Bazinet suggested a deal could be on the horizon, and these Marvel characters could well be a part of it:
“While Disney owns all Marvel intellectual property, Universal has the distribution rights to Hulk and Namor. So if Disney makes a Hulk or Namor movie, Comcast can distribute the movie on Peacock. If Hulu is sold, Disney can use this as an opportunity to secure those distribution rights.”
Hulu is a valuable asset as 44% of US internet households subscribed to Hulu in Q3 2022 with an average revenue per user of $12.46.
Disney’s departure from Hulu wouldn’t be so out of left field. Hulu doesn’t have a foreign presence, Disney has integrated its Hulu original offerings and Fox library into a section of the Disney+ app called “Star” in all international markets where it’s worked well. The US could soon follow suit.
The analyst says Hulu’s price could range from $19.8 billion to $27.5 billion.
