As the Q1 earnings season wraps, let’s dig into this quarter’s best and worst performers in the consumer discretionary - media industry, including Disney (NYSE: DIS) and its peers.

The Consumer Discretionary sector, by definition, is made up of companies selling non-essential goods and services. When economic conditions deteriorate or tastes shift, consumers can easily cut back or eliminate these purchases. For long-term investors with five-year holding periods, this creates a structural challenge: the sector is inherently hit-driven, with low switching costs and fickle customers. As a result, only a handful of companies can reliably grow demand and compound earnings over long periods, which is why our bar is high and High Quality ratings are rare. Media companies create, aggregate, and distribute content—including news, entertainment, and advertising—across television, print, digital, and out-of-home channels. Tailwinds include growing digital advertising budgets, content licensing opportunities, and global audience expansion through streaming and social platforms. Headwinds are substantial: traditional advertising revenue from print and linear TV continues its structural decline as audiences migrate to digital alternatives. Content creation costs are escalating amid intense competition for talent and intellectual property. Media fragmentation makes it difficult to build sustainable audience scale, while AI-generated content threatens to commoditize production and disrupt established business models.

The 7 consumer discretionary - media stocks we track reported a satisfactory Q1. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 0.8%.

Amidst this news, share prices of the companies have had a rough stretch. On average, they are down 10.3% since the latest earnings results.

Disney (NYSE: DIS)

Founded by brothers Walt and Roy, Disney (NYSE: DIS) is a multinational entertainment conglomerate, renowned for its theme parks, movies, television networks, and merchandise.

Disney reported revenues of $25.17 billion, up 6.5% year on year. This print exceeded analysts’ expectations by 1.3%. Overall, it was a satisfactory quarter for the company with a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates.

Even though it had a relatively good quarter, the market seems discontent with the results. The stock is down 7.4% since reporting and currently trades at $93.03.

Is now the time to buy Disney? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.

Best Q1: Warner Music Group (NASDAQ: WMG)

Launching the careers of legendary artists like Frank Sinatra, Warner Music Group (NASDAQ: WMG) is a music company managing a diverse portfolio of artists, recordings, and music publishing services worldwide.

Warner Music Group reported revenues of $1.73 billion, up 16.7% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 7.6%. The business had a stunning quarter with a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates and a solid beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

Warner Music Group delivered the biggest analyst estimate beat among its peers. Although it had a fine quarter compared to its peers, the market seems unhappy with the results as the stock is down 14.3% since reporting. It currently trades at $26.61.

Is now the time to buy Warner Music Group? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.

Slowest Q1: Scholastic (NASDAQ: SCHL)

Creator of the legendary Scholastic Book Fair, Scholastic (NASDAQ: SCHL) is an international company specializing in children's publishing, education, and media services.

Scholastic reported revenues of $476.1 million, down 6.3% year on year, falling short of analysts’ expectations by 7.9%. It was a softer quarter as it posted full-year EBITDA guidance missing analysts’ expectations significantly.

Scholastic delivered the weakest performance against analyst estimates and slowest revenue growth in the group. As expected, the stock is down 6.8% since the results and currently trades at $43.29.

Read our full analysis of Scholastic’s results here.

The New York Times (NYSE: NYT)

Founded in 1851, The New York Times (NYSE: NYT) is an American media organization known for its influential newspaper and expansive digital journalism platforms.

The New York Times reported revenues of $712.2 million, up 12% year on year. This print topped analysts’ expectations by 1.7%. Overall, it was an exceptional quarter as it also recorded a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates.

The stock is down 6.8% since reporting and currently trades at $72.02.

Read our full, actionable report on The New York Times here, it’s free.

fuboTV (NYSE: FUBO)

Originally launched as a soccer streaming platform, fuboTV (NYSE: FUBO) is a video streaming service specializing in live sports, news, and entertainment content.

fuboTV reported revenues of $1.57 billion, up 39.8% year on year. This result met analysts’ expectations. Taking a step back, it was a mixed quarter as it also recorded a solid beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates but a significant miss of analysts’ EPS estimates.

fuboTV achieved the fastest revenue growth among its peers. The stock is down 29.9% since reporting and currently trades at $8.70.

Read our full, actionable report on fuboTV here, it’s free.

Market Update

Over the past year, investors have been forced to repeatedly answer the same question: what is the market’s biggest risk? The answer has changed several times, and each shift has reshaped market leadership.

Late in 2025 and early 2026, artificial intelligence became the market’s primary uncertainty. Investors questioned whether AI would erode software pricing power and weaken competitive moats as AI made it easier to replicate once-differentiated products.

By the spring, technology took a back seat to geopolitics. The U.S. conflict with Iran briefly became the market’s dominant narrative, raising concerns about oil prices, inflation, and global growth. But as energy markets remained orderly and fears of a prolonged supply disruption faded, investors quickly turned their focus back to fundamentals.

Want to invest in winners with rock-solid fundamentals? Check out our Top 6 Stocks and add them to your watchlist. These companies are poised for growth regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate.