Disney up as Jefferies upgrades to 'buy' on cruise growth, limited parks risk

** Shares of media company Walt Disney DIS.N rise 1.6% to $124.35 premarket

** Jefferies upgrades stock rating to "buy" from "hold" on stronger theme parks, cruise business, among others

** Brokerage raises DIS PT to $144 from $100, representing an upside of ~18% to stock's last close

** Says it now sees limited risk of Disney's Parks slowdown in second half of this year from NBCUniversal's CMCSA.O Epic Universe theme park and economic uncertainty

** Jefferies is more optimistic about company's cruise business in fiscal 2026, estimating it could add over $1 bln in revenue

** DIS content slate favorable for next six months, including the ESPN streaming launch and movie releases like Zootopia 2 and Avatar 3 - brokerage

** Brokerage says DIS strategy of increasingly focusing on bundling, studio releases and sports is paying off

** Average rating of 34 brokerages covering DIS is "buy" and their median PT is $128.00 - LSEG-compiled data

** As of last close, stock up ~10% this year