Media giant Walt Disney Co DIS has completed many acquisitions over the years. During the time period led by Bob Iger from 2005 to 2020, Disney acquired Pixar, Marvel and Lucasfilm.
The acquisition of Lucasfilm, founded in 1971 by George Lucas, brought the Star Wars franchise into the Disney umbrella and also gave the company the legendary Indiana Jones character, who is currently back in theaters.
What Happened: On Oct. 30, 2012, Disney announced it was acquiring Lucasfilm in a deal valuing the company at $4.05 billion. Disney paid cash and used 40 million shares to complete the deal.
“This transaction combines a world-class portfolio of content including Star Wars, one of the great family entertainment franchises of all time, with Disney’s unique and unparalleled creativity across multiple platforms, businesses and markets to generate sustained growth and drive significant long-term value,” Iger said at the time.
Since the acquisition, several Star Wars movies and shows have been released, including an additional film trilogy, several origin Star Wars movies, and the creation of shows such as “The Mandalorian” and “The Book of Boba Fett.”
The 2015 movie “Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens” ranks as the top-grossing domestic movie of all time with $936.6 million and ranks fifth among all-time worldwide releases with a gross of $2.07 billion.
Disney has more Star Wars shows and movies planned and the franchise remains a key piece touching Disney segments including consumer products, video games, movies, television, streaming and theme parks.
No small franchise in size, Indiana Jones was also a central part of the Lucasfilm acquisition but is minimized due to the size of Star Wars.
For the first time since 2008, a new Indiana Jones movie found its way to theaters with the June 30 release of “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.”
The movie, which stars Harrison Ford in the title role, is the fifth movie in the franchise that had a trio of movies released in the 1980s. The Indiana Jones franchise has grossed more than $1 billion domestically and could get a boost in future potential if the new movie performs well at the box office.
“Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” opened with $60.4 million domestically and has grossed $121.2 million domestically and $247.9 million worldwide as of the time of writing.
In 2023, Disney has seen some disappointing box office opening figures and could possibly have the company fail to produce a $1 billion grossing movie for the first time since 2014, not counting two pandemic years.
The last Indiana Jones movie released in 2008 was with Paramount Global PARAPARAA grossed $317.1 million domestically and $790.7 million worldwide. “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” opened with $100.1 million domestically. The movie ranked third domestically and second worldwide for total box office gross in 2008.
Related Link: The Rise Of Artificial Intelligence In Movies: How New Indiana Jones Movie De-Aged Harrison Ford
Investing $1,000 in Disney Stock: Just like acquisitions before Lucasfilm, investors questioned if Disney was overpaying at the time. Years later, the box office success of Star Wars and the performance of the streaming platform Disney+ anchored by Star Wars content have helped ease concerns.
Disney shares opened for trading at $51.15 the morning after the Lucasfilm acquisition was announced. A $1,000 investment could have bought 19.55 Disney shares at the time.
Today, those Disney shares would be worth $1,713.36 based on a price of $87.64 for Disney stock at the time of writing. This represents a return of 71.3% since the Lucasfilm acquisition.
The return of Disney has trailed that of the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust SPY, which tracks the S&P 500. A $1,000 investment in the SPY would be worth $3,090.93 today, representing a return of 209.1%.
Star Wars and Indiana Jones could remain staples for Disney in the coming years and could be among the items rewarding investors of the media giant.
Read Next: Disney Q2 Earnings Highlights: Revenue Beat, Disney+ Subs Decline And More
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