Walt Disney slips as Wells Fargo says Hulu sale is 'unlikely'
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Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) shares slipped fractionally in late-day trading on Wednesday as investment firm Wells Fargo downplayed the idea of the Bob Iger-led firm selling Hulu. 
"We think investor expectations for DIS selling Hulu have run too far too fast," analyst Steve Cahall wrote in an investor note. "Yes, it's an option but unless DIS can get a nice price it would seem to remove future optionality."
"We think investors counting on a Hulu divestiture could be disappointed," Cahall continued.
Cahall also noted that Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA), which has frequently been mentioned as a buyer, given that it owns 33% of Hulu, may wind up just focusing on its existing Peacock streaming service.
The analyst also explained that since most of Hulu's content comes from Disney (DIS), any deal may lead to a content deal in addition to an acquisition.
Last week, Iger said he was "bullish" on "some" of the company's streaming prospects, but added that Hulu was a different case.
"What all the different companies that are in streaming have been saying: Every one of them is going to be highly profitable in a couple of years, and grow subs by the tens of millions. It can't possibly happen," Iger said at a Morgan Stanley conference.
Iger added that not all streaming services will win and while Hulu has "very strong original programming" and is attractive for advertisers, Disney (DIS) is looking to understanding where the industry could go, given that it's still early days, save for Netflix (NFLX).
Earlier this month, Citi suggested Walt Disney (DIS) may now be motivated to sell out of its stake in Hulu.