Alyson Stoner, ex-Disney star, reveals the unseen expenses of a Hollywood career.
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: Aug 23 2025
0mins
Source: Yahoo Finance
Alyson Stoner's Career: Alyson Stoner, a dancer and actor since age six, discusses the challenges faced by actors in Hollywood on the podcast "Living Not So Fabulously."
Financial Struggles in Acting: Stoner highlights that only 2% of actors can earn a living solely from acting, with many needing additional jobs to cover expenses.
Impact of Money on Relationships: They reflect on how the entertainment industry intertwines financial value with personal worth, affecting relationships and self-perception from a young age.
Current Endeavors and Financial Awareness: Now a mental health practitioner, Stoner emphasizes the importance of financial literacy and strategic planning to manage expenses effectively while still engaging in the entertainment industry.
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Analyst Views on DIS
Wall Street analysts forecast DIS stock price to rise
19 Analyst Rating
16 Buy
3 Hold
0 Sell
Strong Buy
Current: 99.340
Low
123.00
Averages
137.29
High
152.00
Current: 99.340
Low
123.00
Averages
137.29
High
152.00
About DIS
The Walt Disney Company is a diversified worldwide entertainment company. The Company's segments include Entertainment, Sports and Experiences. The Entertainment segment generally encompasses its non-sports focused global film and episodic content production and distribution activities. The lines of business within the Entertainment segment along with their business activities include Linear Networks, Direct-to-Consumer, and Content Sales/Licensing. The Sports segment encompasses its sports-focused global television and direct-to-consumer (DTC) video streaming content production and distribution activities. The lines of business within the Sports segment include ESPN and Star. The Experiences segment includes Parks and Experiences and Consumer Products. Parks and Experiences consists of Walt Disney World Resort in Florida, Disneyland Resort in California, Disney Cruise Line, and others. Consumer Products includes licensing of its trade names, characters, visual, literary and other IP.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
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- Streaming Performance: Revenue from Disney+ and Hulu surged by 13%, partly due to price increases implemented last October, demonstrating the company's strong appeal in the competitive streaming market.
- Optimistic Earnings Outlook: Management anticipates adjusted earnings per share to rise by 12% for the full fiscal year, with double-digit growth expected in fiscal 2027, reflecting ongoing improvements in profitability.
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- Streaming Revenue Growth: Revenue from Disney+ and Hulu surged 13%, partly due to price increases implemented last October, showcasing the company's competitive strength in the streaming market, with the ESPN streaming service also contributing to revenue growth.
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- Significant Revenue Growth: In Q2 2026, Disney's total revenue increased by 7% year-over-year to $25.2 billion, primarily driven by a 7% growth in experiences, indicating that consumers are still willing to invest in Disney theme parks despite inflationary pressures.
- Strong Streaming Performance: Revenue from Disney+ and Hulu surged by 13%, attributed to price hikes implemented last October, demonstrating the company's continued appeal in the competitive streaming market.
- Sustained Profitability: Management anticipates adjusted earnings per share to rise by 12% for the full fiscal year, with double-digit growth expected in fiscal 2027, reflecting the company's strong fundamentals in the coming years.
- Complex Valuation Outlook: Although Disney's current forward P/E ratio of 13.8 suggests attractiveness, the capital-intensive nature of the business and the complexities of market sentiment create uncertainty regarding future stock valuations.
See More
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- Increased Teams: The 2026 World Cup will feature 48 teams for the first time, hosted across three North American countries, which is expected to attract a larger audience and enhance business opportunities in related sectors.
- Beneficiaries in Consumer Goods: Goldman Sachs predicts that European and U.S. consumer staples, retail, and hospitality sectors will be the main beneficiaries of the World Cup, although the macroeconomic impact may not be substantial or long-lasting.
- Sports Betting Competition: Deutsche Bank analysts highlight the intensifying competition between traditional bookmakers and emerging prediction markets, particularly with platforms like Polymarket and Kalshi gaining traction during this World Cup.
- Private Market Concerns: At the upcoming SuperReturn conference, Partners Group warned of potential limits on fund withdrawals, triggering a sell-off in stocks exposed to private markets, indicating growing concerns about liquidity in the market.
See More
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- Box Office Success: The low-budget psychological horror film 'Backrooms' surpassed $100 million in its opening weekend, becoming A24's highest-grossing domestic film, indicating a strong demand for fresh content among younger audiences.
- Creator Collaboration Risks: Producer Peter Chernin warns that partnerships with YouTube creators may lead to an 80% failure rate, emphasizing the importance of innovation and originality, reflecting Hollywood's misunderstanding of risk.
- Audience Fatigue: Analysts note that younger viewers are increasingly fatigued with franchise films and sequels, suggesting that studios need to seek more compelling concepts to attract audiences.
- Risk and Innovation: Chernin argues that the key to success lies in embracing risk, calling for Hollywood to shift its negative perception of risk over the past decade to meet audiences' desires for unique and original content.
See More
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- Rise of Low-Budget Films: Hollywood is scrambling to replicate the success of 'Backrooms,' a psychological horror film directed by YouTube creator Kane Parsons, which crossed $100 million at the box office in its opening weekend with a mere $10 million budget, highlighting a strong demand for fresh content among younger audiences.
- Call for Risk-Taking: Producer Peter Chernin emphasizes that film studios need to embrace risk, particularly with lower-budget projects, arguing that blindly following YouTube creators could lead to an 80% failure rate, thus underscoring the importance of innovation and original IP.
- Audience Fatigue Phenomenon: As younger viewers grow weary of franchises and sequels, Chernin believes the success of 'Backrooms' signals a desire for unique and original content, prompting the film industry to adjust strategies to attract the new generation of moviegoers.
- Market Change Signals: Analyst Eric Handler notes that while younger audiences still crave the cinema experience, they seek more compelling concepts, predicting that studios will broaden their content scope, especially in low-budget films, to meet market demands.
See More
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- Revenue Growth: In Q2 2026, Disney's total revenue increased by 7% year-over-year to $25.2 billion, primarily driven by a 7% growth in experiences, indicating that consumers are still willing to invest in Disney parks despite inflationary pressures.
- Streaming Performance: Revenue from Disney+ and Hulu surged by 13%, partly due to price increases implemented last October, demonstrating the company's strong appeal in the competitive streaming market.
- Optimistic Earnings Outlook: Management anticipates adjusted earnings per share to rise by 12% for the full fiscal year, with double-digit growth expected in fiscal 2027, reflecting ongoing improvements in profitability.
- Valuation Challenges: Although Disney's current forward P/E ratio of 13.8 suggests attractiveness, predicting market sentiment is difficult, and the capital-intensive nature of the business poses valuation challenges, with steady growth likely over the next five years.
See More
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- Stock Performance Decline: Despite Disney's prominent position in media and entertainment, its stock price has fallen 44% over the past five years, currently trading 51% below its all-time high, which has negatively impacted investor confidence.
- Strong Financial Results: In Q2 2026, Disney reported a 7% year-over-year revenue increase to $25.2 billion, primarily driven by a 7% growth in experiences, indicating that consumers are still willing to spend on Disney parks despite inflationary pressures.
- Streaming Revenue Growth: Revenue from Disney+ and Hulu surged 13%, partly due to price increases implemented last October, showcasing the company's competitive strength in the streaming market, with the ESPN streaming service also contributing to revenue growth.
- Optimistic Future Outlook: Management anticipates a 12% rise in adjusted earnings per share for the full fiscal year, with double-digit growth expected in fiscal 2027, suggesting that despite complex market sentiment, Disney's fundamentals remain strong, positioning it for steady growth over the next five years.
See More
