Disney’s Iger Joins the Boomerang Club of Ho-Hum Returns

When Walt Disney Co. announced in November 2022 that Bob Iger would return as chief executive officer, the market took it as an auspicious sign. The stock jumped more than 6% on the news, its biggest increase in nearly two years.

Instead, Wall Street should have taken it as a warning. Boomerang CEOs are almost universally greeted as heroes, but historically their track records are humbling. A 2019 study found their annual stock performance was 10% worse than their rookie counterparts. And a separate analysis from leadership advisory firm Spencer Stuart found that since 2010, 66% of boomerangs in the S&P 500 had lower total shareholder returns during their second go-arounds.