The strong box office performance of the new release Oz the Great and Powerful over the weekend should give a boost to The Walt Disney Company (DIS), especially compared to the costly flop of John Carter released during the same period last year.

According to market data, the newest film based in Oz took in about $80.3 million at the US Box office over the weekend. It surpassed Identity Thief for the strongest debut for a film in 2013, which took in $35.6 million in its opening weekend.

Coming in at number two over the weekend was Time Warner’s (TWX) Jack the Giant Slayer with $10 million.

Last year around this time, Disney released the sci-fi film John Carter which ended up flopping and costing the company about $200 million. Disney was able to mitigate these losses with strong box office numbers from The Avengers, Brave, and Wreck-it Ralph, however.

Oz the Great and Powerful is Disney’s first release of the year, paving the way for a potentially good year in the film department if the film’s momentum can continue. However, the film still has a long way to go to be profitable with a price target north of $300 million.

Walt Disney shares were inactive during pre-market trading on Monday. The stock is up +35.87% over the past twelve months.

The Bottom Line
Shares of Walt Disney Company (DIS) have a dividend yield of 1.31% based on Friday’s closing price of $57.39 and the company’s annualized dividend payout of 75 cents per share.

The Walt Disney Company (DIS) is not recommended at this time, holding a Dividend.com DARS™ Rating of 3.4 out of 5 stars.

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