Walt Disney’s $4 billion offer for Marvel Entertainment would give it more than 5,000 comic book characters, including such mighty heroes as Iron Man, Spider-Man, and the Fantastic Four. Disney’s Bob Iger told CNBC that the expanded roster will help bring more boys to the home of the Magic Kingdom, where Snow White, Cinderella and the Little Mermaid have long reigned supreme.
The cash and stock deal values Marvel at $50 per share, or a premium of 29 percent to Marvel’s closing stock price of $38.65 on Friday. The deal has been approved by the boards of both companies, and since Marvel’s CEO, Isaac Perlmutter, is also the largest shareholder of the company, it’s likely a done deal.
Marvel’s second quarter was a mighty one. It beat market estimates on strong DVD and pay TV sales of “Iron Man,” sending its shares to an all-time high. This year has been a lull for Marvel, with no new film releases due until 2010, when Iron Man 2 hits screens. Thor and the first Avenger movie, as well as Sony-produced “Spider-Man 4,” are slated for a 2011 release and an “Avengers” sequel is due in 2012.
Is this a game changer for Disney’s foes? Marvel rival DC Comics, with its stable of Batman, Watchmen and other, darker comic champions, is already a part of Time Warner. For the fantastic leap comic books have made to the big screen, this could be the last hurrah.
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5 comments so far
oh boy now Iron man and Fantastic four will be chasing Snow White, Cinderella and Mermaid for a date where Spider man will be setting his web to capture them. This will be interesting.
The Signature Of A True Human Is The Smile He/She Brings On The Face Of Others.
- Posted by LonelyPoetLonelyPoet
What will this do the six flags theme parks and for the disney theme parks?
- Posted by coleIn trying to appeal to a male audience Disney aquires Marvel Entertainment for $4 billion. Here are some ideas for the Disney executives; perhaps the Incredible Hulk can star in a sequel to Beauty and the Beast. Spider-man can swing across the skyline of Manhattan with Tinkerbell lofting at his side sprinkling pixie dust and thinking happy thoughts. The Fantastic Four can team up with Captain Jack Sparrow and his crew to battle against the dark forces of the Carribean. I hope those ideas can help Disney obtain a more masculine image.
- Posted by RobWhat happens to the Hulk and Spiderman attractions at the Universal theme parks? Do they just paint them and rename them?
- Posted by Tamara StevensMarvel Technologies is up .50 on no other basis than that most major financial publications are erroneously citing their ticker (MRVL) instead of Marvel Entertainment’s (MVL) in the Disney story. Retractions and corrections before the major lawsuits start to fly?
- Posted by Stephen Manion