Comcast announced a plan Wednesday to spin off most of its cable television networks into a separate publicly traded company.

The new company will include the USA Network, CNBC, MSNBC, Oxygen, E!, SYFY and the Golf Channel. Comcast will retain key NBCUniversal assets, including the NBC broadcast network, NBC News, NBC Sports, the streaming service Peacock and the cable channel Bravo.

“The transaction will be structured as a tax-free spin to existing shareholders,” Comcast President Mike Cavanagh said in an internal memo. “While we don’t have a precise timetable for completing the transition, we are estimating that it will take approximately a year.”

Comcast owns NBCUniversal, the parent company of NBC News.

The move comes as the traditional cable television bundle faces stiff economic headwinds, most notably the rise of cord-cutting and the shift to streaming alternatives. Comcast’s cable portfolio still contributes to its financial bottom line and helps expand its cultural footprint.

“The well-capitalized, independent company will be positioned to lead in the changing landscape for cable networks given the strength of its portfolio and the quality and focus of its management team,” Cavanagh said. 

The new company, known for the time being as SpinCo, “will have significant cash flow, a strong balance sheet, and the financial flexibility to pursue growth opportunities, both organically and potentially through acquisitions,” Cavanagh added.

Cavanagh said the new company will be led by Mark Lazarus, chairman of NBCUniversal’s media group. Anand Kini, NBCUniversal’s chief financial officer, will serve as the CFO and chief operating officer.

The plan was first reported by The Wall Street Journal and then confirmed to NBC News on Tuesday by two people familiar with the matter.

The new business structure is notable partly because it would separate MSNBC and CNBC from the central newsgathering operations of NBC News. It was not immediately clear whether the cable news channels and the network’s core news division would continue to share editorial resources.

Dan Ives, a managing director and senior equity research analyst covering the technology sector at Wedbush Securities, said in an email that the spinoff move is appealing to investors. Comcast’s stock price rose by about 0.5% in premarket trading Wednesday.

“The Street wanted to see this move and we believe it will be a smart strategic move for both Comcast and the new spinoff with golden jewel cable assets like CNBC and MSNBC,” he said. “The cord cutting dynamic is a headwind but we see brighter days ahead as cable defines a new monetization and streaming path with subscriptions and content to build on its strong advertising base looking forward.”

Rich Greenfield, a media and technology analyst who often criticizes media companies for what he views as a belated reaction to cord-cutting, framed the move in blunt terms in an appearance on CNBC: “This is sort of a very clear, direct statement by Comcast.”

“They are exiting the cable network business,” said Greenfield, a co-founder of research firm LightShed Partners. “This is them saying we don’t want to be in this business. This is no longer a growth business. It’s going to be around for a long time, but it’s just no longer a growth business.”

Cavanagh on Wednesday also announced a reorganized leadership team for NBCUniversal.

Cesar Conde will continue leading the NBCUniversal News Group as chairman. The division includes NBC News, the NBC News Now streaming product, Telemundo and the company’s owned-and-operated local stations. Cavanagh added Conde “will work closely with me on other growth opportunities for NBCUniversal.”

Donna Langley will become chair of NBCUniversal Entertainment & Studios, a role that will give her broad oversight over all entertainment programming and marketing across NBC, Peacock and Bravo, as well as the company’s film and television studios.

Matt Strauss will become chairman of the NBCUniversal Media Group. Mark Woodbury will continue in his role as chairman and chief executive officer of Universal Destinations & Experiences, the unit that runs the theme parks and global consumer products business.

Comcast agreed to buy a majority stake in NBCUniversal from General Electric in 2009, combining one of the country’s largest operators of cable TV with the sizable NBC media and entertainment operation. The cable channels were seen as a particularly lucrative acquisition.

Since then, the rise of streaming entertainment has eaten into the cable television business, leading to waves of consumers canceling their cable subscriptions in favor of platforms such as Netflix and Amazon Prime Video.

In this environment, many cable channels are still profitable businesses, with some continuing to generate strong cash flows for their corporate owners. But the media industry writ large considers the cable marketplace to be in decline.

Comcast, like other leading media conglomerates, has invested heavily in streaming. Peacock, home to a large library of NBCUniversal content and programming licensed from other studios, added 3 million subscribers during the third fiscal quarter, according to the company’s most recent earnings report. Comcast lost 365,000 cable customers during that period.

The Disney fleet is expanding.

Next month, the Disney Treasure cruise ship will make its maiden voyage from Port Canaveral, Florida, to the Caribbean, officially becoming the sixth ship in the company’s lineup.

The Treasure, which is 221 feet tall and 1,119 feet long, can carry 4,000 passengers and 1,555 crew members. Like Disney’s other cruise ships, the Treasure features themed dining, curated lounges and premium on-board live entertainment.

As the Treasure sets sail, Disney, too, is embarking on its own journey. The company, which hadn’t launched a new ship in a decade prior to the Disney Wish’s debut in mid-2022, is entering an era of rapid expansion.

Disney’s fleet will double by 2031, with two ships arriving in 2025 — the Disney Destiny and the Disney Adventure — followed by four additional Disney-branded vessels and a partnership with Oriental Land Company to bring Disney’s cruise vacations to Japan.

“Disney Cruise Line is going through an unprecedented period of growth,” said Thomas Mazloum, president of Disney’s new experiences portfolio and Disney signature experiences. “The demand that we’re seeing right now for Disney Cruise Line is very strong. We’re a premium brand, occupancy is high, and frankly, the business is doing really, really well.”

Disney cruises are part of the company’s experiences division, alongside parks, resorts and consumer products. According to the company’s earnings report on Thursday, the division posted record revenue and profit for fiscal 2024, with revenue up 5% for the full year to $34.15 billion and operating income up 4% to $9.27 billion.

The experiences segment was the second-highest revenue driver for Disney last year behind its entertainment division, which tallied $41.18 billion in fiscal 2024. However, the entertainment segment’s operating profits were smaller, just $3.92 billion.

Full-year revenue growth in experiences was the strongest of any Disney division, and the company expects to see 6% to 8% profit growth for experiences in fiscal 2025.

Disney has become a leader in the family cruising space, despite its relatively small number of ships. For comparison, the three largest cruise lines are Carnival, with more than 100 vessels, Royal Caribbean, with more than 40, and Norwegian Cruise Line, with around 30.

Disney is considered slightly more expensive than Carnival and Royal Caribbean for base pricing, but if guests choose to upgrade to larger cabins or add food packages or experiences to their itineraries, the prices are quite similar.

Disney’s Treasure offers seven-night cruises starting at $4,277 for two guests and $6,994 for a family of four. These prices increase if travelers select cruises tied to Halloween or Christmas.

What sets Disney apart is its innovations in cruising and its focus on storytelling, said Gavin Doyle, founder of MickeyVisit.com.

“Disney redefined the cruising space when they entered, and that was in the way they were designing the ships in a guest-centric way that they serviced people on board, and also the beloved characters and intellectual properties that they can integrate,” he said.

Doyle noted that Disney accommodates diners using “rotational dining” on its cruise ships. Passengers don’t eat in one large mess hall — they are prescheduled to dine at different themed restaurants. Disney rotates the restaurant staff, too, to follow each group of passengers to their scheduled restaurant. In so doing, guests have the same servers, busboys and restaurant managers throughout their trip, and the waitstaff gets to know the guests — and their preferences.

“They’re able to just deliver this level of customer service that does feel like magic,” Doyle said.

While there are traditional amenities onboard the Treasure that are staples on cruise lines — upscale restaurants, pools, spas and gaming rooms for kids — Disney has integrated storytelling into these services to elevate them for guests.

Its dinnertime restaurants are immersive and feature live entertainment. Plaza de Coco, the first theatrical dining experience themed to the 2017 film “Coco,” invites guests to gather at Mariachi Plaza for a festive meal and music.

Meanwhile, over at Worlds of Marvel, guests will experience two different shows, one called “Avengers: Quantum Encounter” and the other “Marvel Celebration of Heroes: Groot Remix.”

The high-tech venue has a number of screens for diners to tune in to during their meal to experience the heroic adventures.

There is also 1923, a restaurant named after the founding year of Walt Disney Animation Studios. This location is a bit more subdued and upscale. It features a collection of exploration-themed artwork from modern and classic animated films.

In addition to the three main family restaurants, the Treasure has a number of places for casual dining and to grab quick bites during the journey. Those with a sweet tooth can head to Jumbeaux’s Sweets, which is based on the ice cream parlor from Disney’s “Zootopia.”

The Treasure also features some adult-exclusive dining locations for those traveling without kids or looking for a night away.

Palo Steakhouse and Enchante are upscale restaurants inspired by “Beauty and the Beast” and feature gourmet Italian and French menus. The Rose, a chic lounge at the entrance to the two restaurants, has pre-dinner aperitifs and after-dinner cocktails.

The Disney Treasure marks the first time that Disney has brought intellectual properties from its parks to one of its ships.

The Haunted Mansion Parlor is a bar that features ghostly design elements from the famed attraction as well as spirit-filled cocktails, mocktails and zero-proof beverages.

“Walt Disney World has been around 50 years,” said Mazloum. “Disneyland even longer. Many of our guests over the years have been growing up by coming to our parks and over time you have these iconic attractions and experiences … Our Imagineers, and I’ve got to give them a lot of credit, came up with the idea.”

“We were literally thrilled with that idea, and even more thrilled with the reception we’ve received,” he added.

Another fan-favorite parks property coming to the Treasure is Jungle Cruise. Skipper Society is a place to grab themed cocktails and light snacks surrounded by camp-style furnishings.

Other adults-only spots include Scat Cat Lounge, based on “The Aristocats,” and Periscope Pub, based on “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.”

Of course, for many, Disney cruises are a family affair.

“People often say that they have been designed with families in mind, which is absolutely correct,” said Mazloum. “I would go a step further and say they’ve really been designed for multiple generations so that everyone is allowed to enjoy their experiences.”

According to the Cruise Lines International Association, cruises are a top choice for multigenerational travels, with one-third of families sailing with at least two generations. Another 28% of cruise travelers board with three to five generations, the organization said in its annual state of the cruise industry report published in April.

Disney has dedicated spaces for every age group. It’s a Small World nursery offers babysitting services for children ages six months to three years, while older children can head over to Disney’s Oceaneer Club, which features several immersive spaces.

Families can also catch “Disney the Tale of Moana” at the Walt Disney Theatre onboard the Treasure. The Broadway-style production features a massive Te Ka puppet and introduces an all-new song called “Warrior Face.” The stage will also feature “Disney Seas the Adventure” and “Beauty and the Beast.”

Additionally, the Treasure will have Hero Zone and the Wonderland and Never Land Cinemas, popular spaces from the Disney Wish. Hero Zone is a sports and recreation venue with game show-style competitions and physical challenges, while cinemas are luxe screening rooms featuring first-run films from Disney, Pixar, Marvel and Lucasfilm.

Similar to the Wish, the Treasure also has a Toy Story-themed area that includes a splash pool, wading pool and family waterslide. There’s also an adapted version of the Wish’s AquaMouse water coaster called “Curse of the Golden Egg.”

Target reported earnings Wednesday that came in far below Wall Street’s expectations, something the big-box retailer attributed to slower than expected demand.

The company announced profits that fell short of forecasts by 20%, its widest miss in two years. Revenues, meanwhile, came in under expectations for the first time in more than a year.

Target’s stock, as a result, fell more than 21% Wednesday.

The discouraging results came despite a heavily touted campaign to discount thousands of items, as well as a pushed-up holiday sale.

On a call with reporters, Target CEO Brian Cornell blamed the dismal quarter on “lingering softness in discretionary categories,” as well as costs associated with preparing for the short-lived port strike in October.

Target Chief Operating Officer Michael Fiddelke added that it was “disappointing that a deceleration in discretionary demand combined with some cost pressures have caused us to take our guidance back down after raising it last quarter.”

The company lowered its profit and sales goals for the year, though Fiddelke said Target feels confident in its long-term outlook.

Broader stock trading did not immediately react, however, as Wall Street awaits earnings from chipmaker Nvidia, which has helped power the market higher throughout the year. Yet, combined with other indicators like slower holiday hiring, it could be a signal that sales for the all-important final calendar quarter could be softer than hoped.

Target’s report comes a day after rival Walmart reported earnings and revenues that beat expectations.

Yet, even Walmart noted that customers were still holding back in many cases for compelling deals, especially as the cost of food has risen.

“We’re expecting this holiday period to be very consistent with that,” Walmart Chief Financial Officer John David Rainey told CNBC. “They’re focused on price and value.”

McDonald’s is preparing 2025 value offerings in a bid to hang onto customers who are fed up with high costs at restaurants.

The company is working on a new “McValue” approach for next year that involves keeping the $5 value meal offer it launched this summer on the menu for the first half of the year, along with introducing a “buy one add one” option for $1 more, CNBC has learned. The “buy one add one” offer includes a double cheeseburger; McChicken sandwich; 6 piece chicken nuggets and small fry; or breakfast options of a Sausage McMuffin, sausage biscuit or sausage burrito and a hash brown, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Local value offerings have been on menus across the country and in the app as of late, including 10 piece nuggets for $1, among other deals, as a part of the broader value strategy.

While operators are still voting on the 2025 value offerings, the initiative looks likely to pass, two people familiar with the matter said. McDonald’s declined to comment.

In its most recent quarter, McDonald’s reported earnings and revenue that topped expectations, but saw its same-store sales fall globally by 1.5%. Sales rose 0.3% in the U.S., slightly weaker than anticipated by analysts.

On the earnings call, executives said they were working to solidify a 2025 value platform to launch in the first quarter of the year.

“You need, at the foundation, to have a strong value proposition. And that’s been the focus for us in a number of our markets, either strengthening, adding to, adjusting our value programs so we have that good foundation,” CEO Chris Kempczinski said on a call with analysts.

“You need to then overlay on top of that food news that can excite the customer, and you have to have great marketing behind it. And when you do that with news and great marketing, you can get strong full margin check that goes along with some of those value programs,” he said.

But a recent outbreak of E. coli tied to McDonald’s slivered onions dented traffic in October, executives said, which will fall into the fourth-quarter earnings cycle.

The fast-food giant will invest more than $100 million to boost restaurant sales and speed up the recovery at affected franchisees, CNBC reported Friday.

Of that total, $65 million will be invested into supporting owners who have lost business, targeting those in the hardest-hit states. Approximately $35 million will be invested in traffic-driving programs, including marketing efforts, according to a memo to owners and employees viewed by CNBC.