Walt Disney Co (NYSE: DIS ) demonstrated a muted initial reaction to the company's fiscal second-quarter earnings beat on Wednesday morning. While stronger-than-expected earnings and revenue are certainly good news, analysts say Disney's long-term outlook is still riding on its streaming service, and Disney needs to close its deal for Twenty-First Century Fox, Inc. ( FOXA ) assets.

Disney reported second-quarter earnings per share of $1.84 on revenue of $14.55 billion after the closing bell on Tuesday. Analysts had been expecting EPS of $1.70 and revenue of $14.11 billion. Revenue was up 9 percent from a year ago.

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By segment, Disney reported Media and Networks revenue of $6.14 billion, up 3 percent and ahead of analyst expectations of $6.09 billion. Parks and Resorts revenue was $4.88 billion, up 13 percent and above analyst expectations of $4.69 billion. Studio Entertainment was Disney's highest-growth segment, with revenue up 21 percent to $2.45 billion. Analysts had expected Studio revenue of $2.19 billion.

Consumer Products & Interactive Media revenue was up 2 percent to $1.07 billion, short of analyst expectations of $1.14 billion.

CEO Bob Iger says Disney's quarter was driven by blockbuster movies.

"Our ability to create extraordinary content like 'Black Panther' and 'Avengers: Infinity War' and leverage it across all business units, the unique value proposition we're creating for consumers with our [direct-to-consumer] platforms and our recent reorganization strengthen our confidence that we are very well positioned for future growth," Iger says.

Disney is planning to launch its own streaming video service in 2019 to compete with Netflix ( NFLX ). A big part of that plan involves Disney closing a $52 billion deal to land Fox's TV and film studio assets. However, Comcast Corp. ( CMCSA ) is reportedly planning to make a competing cash bid for Fox's assets if the pending merger between AT&T ( T ) and Time Warner ( TWX ) is ultimately approved by regulators.

Iger declined to comment on Tuesday when asked about Comcast's plans.

According to GBH Insights head of technology research Daniel Ives, Disney's quarter was solid, but the market cares much more about the Fox deal and Disney's streaming services.

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"The composition of revenues was a positive in our opinion and overall the quarter was better than feared, with a stronger than expected bottom-line performance front and center," Ives says.

GBH Insights has an "attractive" rating and $120 price target for DIS stock.

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Raymond Mitchell, Author

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