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Avengers Endgame Smashes Box Office Records: Buy Disney ETFs

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The Walt Disney Company (DIS - Free Report) , which is in the process of acquiring Fox’s major assets for $71 billion, is on investors’ radar with the release of Marvel Studios' new action movie - Avengers: Endgame. This is especially true as the movie broke box office records hitting the billion-dollar mark in just five days.

Avengers: Endgame became the first film to surpass $1 billion in its opening weekend, raking in $350 million domestically and $1.2 billion worldwide. This Marvel superhero movie broke the previous record of Avengers: Infinity War, which hit the billion dollar level in 11 days. Avengers: Endgame is the last movie of the Avengers series and has a running time of more than three hours. It is on track to overtake the highest domestic grossing film, Disney Lucasfilm's Star Wars: The Force Awakens, which garnered $936 million, and the highest globally grossing film Avatar, which had fetched in $2.8 billion (see: all the Consumer Discretionary ETFs here).

The blockbuster success of the fourth Avengers movie will act as a strong catalyst for Disney. In fact, the stock shot up to an all-time high on Apr 26 on hype over the new film. Disney is primed for more growth this year and the stock is poised to surge further given the slew of other potential blockbuster releases including Aladdin, The Lion King, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Toy Story 4, The Secret Life of Pets 2, Spider-Man: Far From Homeand It: Chapter 2 in the coming months.

Following its acquisition of Twenty-First Century Fox (FOXA - Free Report) , Disney is expected to account for at least 40% of domestic box-office revenues in 2019, a new record of market share. Plus, the acquisition will boost its competitive position and pose a significant threat to growing digital rivals like Netflix (NFLX - Free Report) and Amazon.com (AMZN - Free Report) (read: Disney-Fox Deal to Change Media Industry: ETF in Focus).

Though the Disney currently has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell), its Growth Score of B seems encouraging. Investors seeking to tap the huge success of Avengers: Endgame in the stock world could play the consumer ETFs having the largest exposure to this global media and entertainment company. Below, we have highlighted some of them:

Invesco Dynamic Leisure and Entertainment ETF (PEJ - Free Report)

This fund offers exposure to 29 US leisure and entertainment companies by tracking the Dynamic Leisure and Entertainment Intellidex Index. The Walt Disney is the top firm making up for 8.5% allocation. The ETF has amassed $67.3 million in its asset base and trades in a light volume of 16,000 shares a day on average. PEJ charges 63 bps in annual fees and has a Zacks ETF Rank #3 (Hold) with a High risk outlook.

Multifactor Media and Communications ETF

This ETF follows the John Hancock Dimensional Media and Communications Index, which targets a wide range of U.S. media and communication stocks to exploit the sector's opportunities. It holds 65 stocks in its basket with DIS taking the top spot at 8.3% share. JHCS has managed assets worth $4.0 million and charges 40 bps in annual fees. It trades in average daily volume of 5,000 shares.

PowerShares Dynamic Media Portfolio

PBS seeks to offer capital appreciation by investing in companies that are selected on a variety of investment merit criteria, including price momentum, earnings momentum, quality, management action and value by tracking the Dynamic Media Intellidex Index. This approach results in a basket of 30 stocks with Disney occupying the top spot at 8%. The product has AUM of $85.2 million and average daily volume of 29,000 shares. It has an expense ratio of 0.63% and has a Zacks ETF Rank #2 (Buy) with a Medium risk outlook.

iShares Evolved U.S. Media and Entertainment ETF

This newly actively managed ETF employs data science techniques to identify companies with exposure to the media and entertainment sector. Holding 85 stocks in its basket, Disney occupies the top position in the basket with 7.9% share. The fund has accumulated $5.6 million in its asset base and charges 18 bps in annual fees. It trades in paltry volume of around 1,000 shares (read: Netflix Beats, Guides Lower: ETFs in Focus).

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