If You Invested $1,000 In Walt Disney Stock At Its Pandemic Low, Here's How Much You'd Have Now

Investors who bought stocks during the COVID-19 market crash in 2020 have generally experienced some big gains in the past two years. But there is no question some big-name stocks performed better than others since the pandemic bottom.

Disney's Bumpy Ride: One company that has been a lackluster investment in the past two years has been media and entertainment giant Walt Disney Co DIS.

Disney’s theme parks, cruise lines and TV and movie studio businesses experienced a near worst-case scenario when the COVID-19 pandemic occurred in early 2020. Vacation travel demand fell to nearly 0%, and Disney was forced to close its parks and suspend its cruises.

Fortunately for Disney investors, the pandemic coincided almost perfectly with the launch of the Disney+ streaming platform. Customers stuck at home with nothing to do but watch TV subscribed to Disney+ in droves in 2020, and the platform gained more than 100 million subscribers less than a year and a half after its November 2019 launch.

At the beginning of 2020, Disney shares were trading at around $146. By the beginning of March, the stock had dropped to around $119 after news of the virus spreading in China prompted concerns about a U.S. pandemic. On March 16, Disney closed all its theme parks around the world. The stock ultimately bottomed at $79.07 just two days later.

By the time Walt Disney World reopened at 25% capacity in July, Disney shares were back up to around $113.

Related Link: If You Invested $1,000 In General Electric Stock At Its Pandemic Low, Here's How Much You'd Have Now

Disney In 2022, Beyond: Disney shares hit new all-time highs of $203.02 in March 2021, but the stock has since pulled all the way back to $132.07.

Still, investors who bought Disney on the day it hit its pandemic low and held on have generated a positive return on their investment. In fact, $1,000 in Disney stock bought on March 18, 2020, would be worth about $1,527 today, assuming reinvested dividends.

Looking ahead, analysts are expecting Disney stock to rebound in the next 12 months. The average price target among the 25 analysts covering the stock is $191, suggesting 44.5% upside from current levels.