The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI -0.98%) is quietly stringing together an impressive streak of wins. Rising for a sixth straight session on Friday, the blue-chip index polished up a full week in which it didn't decline on a single day. That said, Walt Disney (DIS -1.01%) stock certainly didn't help the Dow close out in the green today, finishing as the worst performer in the 30-stock index. The Dow nonetheless was able to tack on 25 points, or 0.2%, to end at 16,947.
Disney shares shed 1.1% on Friday on heavy trading. Perhaps investors are starting to realize that Harrison Ford's injury -- which was initially reported to have been ankle-related -- is bad news for the production schedule of Star Wars: Episode VII. Ford's publicist announced yesterday that the 71-year-old actor actually suffered a broken leg last week while filming, highlighting the fact that, well, septuagenarian action stars are rare for a reason.
Elsewhere in the stock market today, shares of intellectual property company Vringo (NASDAQ: VRNG) were also taking a hit, though in this instance shareholders were dinged to the tune of 5.1%. Unlike Disney, Vringo is a relatively small business as far as Wall Street is concerned (worth around $300 million to Disney's $140 billion size), and its financial results tend to fluctuate dramatically from year to year. Institutional investors just exercised about $10 million in warrants at a price of $1.76 per share, or a little more than half Vringo's current price per share. The fact that the warrants could still have been exercised for another three years shows that some big money doesn't believe in the long-term prospects of the company.
The US Airways merger gives American Airlines greater market share and pricing power. Source: American Airlines
Finally, shares of American Airlines Group (AAL 1.51%) were soaring on Friday, rallying 3.5% despite global oil prices that continue to creep higher. Deutsche Bank recently commended the unusually impressive performance seen in the airline industry, pointing out that most U.S. airlines are now producing returns in excess of their cost of capital. With its US Airways merger complete and a new agreement with its machinists union in place, American Airlines seems to be getting all its ducks in a row.
