Good morning. The Walt Disney Company’s CEO transition is notable not just for who is ascending, but for how deliberately the company built financial stability around it by extending CFO Hugh Johnston’s contract months before a new CEO was even named. Josh D’Amaro, a 28-year veteran of the company, took over as chief executive at Disney’s annual shareholders meeting on Wednesday, succeeding longtime CEO Bob Iger. Named to the role on Feb. 3, D’Amaro most recently served as head of Disney Experiences, which includes the company’s theme parks, cruise line, resorts and consumer products. There was some praise for Iger on social media. “What you have built is not a career, it’s a LEGACY,” NBA star Chris Paul said in a post on LinkedIn. Iger, who had a long career at Disney, served as CEO from 2005 to 2020, then returned in 2022 following the controversy-filled tenure of his first replacement, Bob Chapek. He will temporarily stay on as a senior advisor and board member, stepping down eight months ahead of schedule. A potential merger between Paramount Global and Warner Bros. Discovery could increase competition for Disney (No. 46 on the Fortune 500). But D’Amaro could be well-positioned to lead growth. Under his leadership, Disney’s parks and experiences became the company’s primary profit engine, accounting for more than 70% of operating income despite representing under 40% of total revenue, Fortune reported. Streaming is the other major growth driver, following consecutive quarters of profitability. In November, Disney extended Johnston’s contract through Jan. 31, 2029—before the new CEO was even announced. He joined Disney in 2023, following a long career at PepsiCo. Johnston has a “well-earned reputation as one of the best CFOs in America,” Iger said in a statement in 2023. At the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media and Telecom Conference earlier this month, Johnston called Disney’s CEO succession process a strength. “I would tell you they looked internally, externally, they really pushed hard on the candidates, and came to a conclusion that is a terrific one,” he said. He described both D’Amaro and Dana Walden, who will become the company’s president and chief creative officer, a new role, as “terrific growth-oriented executives.” Walden was widely reported to be a CEO contender. “There’s a lot of energy there in terms of people being excited about Josh, being excited about the fact that this process was also handled so smoothly,” Johnston said. “You all know some of the history of Disney and CEO successions going all the way back to Michael Ovitz. This couldn’t have been more different than that. It was a really smooth, well-run process with minimal drama.” Johnston reaffirmed guidance for double-digit EPS growth in both 2026 and 2027. On MA, he said Disney doesn’t need to do significant deals. “We’re very fortunate that with the moves that Bob Iger made during his tenure as CEO, whether it was acquiring Pixar, Lucasfilm, Marvel, and then the Fox acquisition, we were kind of in front of the curve in terms of generating a large collection of IP,” he said. Sheryl [email protected] This story was originally featured on Fortune.com ...read more read less