ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company. Disney bought ABC’s parent, Capital Cities/ABC, for $19 billion in a deal that closed in 1996. Today, ABC is part of Disney’s television group, and Disney owns 100% of it. No other company or person holds a stake in the ABC network.
But that is only half the answer. Disney owns just 8 of the local stations that carry ABC. More than 230 other ABC stations belong to companies like Sinclair, Nexstar, and Tegna. Below, you will find who owns ABC, ABC News, and your local ABC station, plus who owns Disney itself.
Key Takeaways
- The Walt Disney Company owns 100% of ABC, which it bought in 1996 for $19 billion.
- ABC News is also owned by Disney and run as part of ABC.
- Disney owns 8 local ABC stations, including ABC7 in New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago.
- More than 230 local ABC stations are affiliates owned by other companies, led by Sinclair and Nexstar.
- Disney is a public company. Its largest shareholders are Vanguard (about 8.7%) and BlackRock (about 7.9%).
Does Disney Own ABC?
Yes. ABC, short for the American Broadcasting Company, is a wholly owned part of The Walt Disney Company. It sits inside Disney’s television group, alongside channels like FX, Freeform, and the Disney Channel.
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Owner | The Walt Disney Company (100%) |
| Owner since | February 1996 |
| Price paid | $19 billion |
| Disney stock ticker | DIS (New York Stock Exchange) |
| ABC headquarters | Burbank, California |
| ABC News headquarters | 7 Hudson Square, New York City |
| Disney-owned stations | 8 |
| Affiliate stations | More than 230 |
Who is the majority owner of ABC? Disney is the only owner, so it is also the majority owner. ABC has no shares of its own. If you hear that Vanguard or BlackRock “owns ABC,” that refers to their stakes in Disney, not in ABC directly.
Who Owned ABC Before Disney?
ABC changed hands several times before Disney bought it. Here is the full ownership history:
| Year | Event | Owner After |
|---|---|---|
| 1943 | Edward J. Noble buys NBC’s Blue Network radio service for $8 million | Edward J. Noble |
| 1945 | The Blue Network is renamed the American Broadcasting Company | Edward J. Noble |
| 1948 | ABC launches its television network | Edward J. Noble |
| 1953 | ABC merges with United Paramount Theatres, a movie theater chain | American Broadcasting-Paramount Theatres |
| 1986 | Capital Cities Communications completes its purchase of ABC | Capital Cities/ABC |
| 1996 | Disney completes its $19 billion purchase of Capital Cities/ABC | The Walt Disney Company |
The 1953 merger is why ABC grew into a major TV network. Leonard Goldenson, who ran United Paramount Theatres, used the theater chain’s money to build ABC’s TV schedule and led the company for decades.
The 1986 deal surprised the industry. Capital Cities was a much smaller company, yet it bought ABC for about $3.5 billion. Ten years later, Disney bought the combined company, which also owned a majority stake in ESPN.
Who Owns ABC News?
ABC News is owned by Disney. It is a division of ABC, not a separate company, so it has the same owner as the network.
ABC News produces “Good Morning America,” “World News Tonight,” “20/20,” “Nightline,” and “This Week.” It also runs ABC News Live, a streaming news channel. Almin Karamehmedovic has been president of ABC News since 2024.
Is ABC News independent from Disney? ABC News runs its own newsroom and makes its own daily news decisions. But it is part of Disney, so Disney sets its budget and appoints its leaders.
Who Owns Your Local ABC Station?
This is where ownership gets confusing. Disney owns the ABC network, which supplies shows like “Good Morning America” and “Grey’s Anatomy.” But most local ABC channels are owned by other companies.
What is an ABC affiliate? An affiliate is a local TV station owned by another company that signs a contract to carry ABC’s shows. The station keeps its own local news and sells some of its own ads.
The 8 Stations Disney Owns
Disney owns ABC stations in 8 large markets, through its ABC Owned Television Stations group:
| Station | City |
|---|---|
| WABC-TV (ABC7) | New York |
| KABC-TV (ABC7) | Los Angeles |
| WLS-TV (ABC7) | Chicago |
| WPVI-TV (6abc) | Philadelphia |
| KTRK-TV (ABC13) | Houston |
| KGO-TV (ABC7) | San Francisco |
| WTVD (ABC11) | Raleigh-Durham |
| KFSN-TV (ABC30) | Fresno |
The Largest ABC Affiliate Owners
Two companies own about a quarter of all ABC affiliates, according to the Associated Press:
| Company | ABC Affiliates | Total TV Stations |
|---|---|---|
| Sinclair Broadcast Group | 38 | 178 |
| Nexstar Media Group | 28 | More than 200 |
| Tegna | ABC stations in 13 markets | 64 |
Nexstar agreed to buy Tegna for $6.2 billion in 2025. In October 2026, Tegna renewed its ABC contracts in 13 markets, as reported by TheDesk.
How do you find out who owns your ABC station? Search for your station’s call letters, such as “WSB-TV owner.” Most station websites also list the parent company at the bottom of the page.
Who Runs ABC?
Josh D’Amaro became Disney’s CEO in March 2026, replacing Bob Iger. Disney named him on February 3, 2026, according to Bloomberg. D’Amaro previously ran Disney’s theme parks.
| Leader | Role |
|---|---|
| Josh D’Amaro | CEO, The Walt Disney Company |
| Dana Walden | President and Chief Creative Officer, Disney |
| Craig Erwich | President, Disney Television Group |
| Almin Karamehmedovic | President, ABC News |
| Chad Matthews | President, ABC Owned Television Stations |
ABC does not have its own CEO. The network reports to Disney’s leadership, and Disney’s board of directors oversees the whole company, including ABC.
Who Owns Disney?
Since ABC belongs to Disney, the real question for many readers is who owns Disney. Disney is a public company, so it is owned by its shareholders. No single person or family controls it.
| Shareholder | Shares | Stake |
|---|---|---|
| Vanguard (two units) | 150.2 million | About 8.7% |
| BlackRock | 136.9 million | About 7.9% |
| State Street | 83.5 million | About 4.8% |
| JPMorgan Chase | 75.8 million | About 4.4% |
| Geode Capital Management | 41.3 million | About 2.4% |
Source: 13F filings as of June 30, 2026, divided by the 1.727 billion shares listed in Disney’s quarterly report.
Vanguard and BlackRock mostly hold these shares for people who own index funds. The same firms are also top owners of many large US companies, as we show in who owns Apple.
Who Owns NBC, CBS, and Fox?
ABC is one of the “Big 3” US broadcast networks, along with NBC and CBS. Fox later became the fourth. Each has a different owner:
| Network | Owner | Owner Type |
|---|---|---|
| ABC | The Walt Disney Company | Public company |
| NBC | Comcast (through NBCUniversal) | Public company |
| CBS | Paramount Skydance | Public company, controlled by the Ellison family |
| Fox | Fox Corporation | Public company, controlled by the Murdoch family |
Paramount Skydance also bought Warner Bros. Discovery in October 2026, as we explain in who owns Netflix. That makes Disney’s main TV rivals bigger than ever.
Can You Buy ABC Stock?
Not directly. ABC has no stock of its own. The only way to own a piece of ABC is to buy Disney shares (DIS) on the New York Stock Exchange.
One Disney share gives you a very small stake in ABC, along with Disney’s theme parks, movie studios, Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN. Ownership works the same way at other big brands, where one parent company owns many businesses. For example, X (formerly Twitter) is now part of SpaceX, as we cover in who owns Twitter.
Bottom Line
The short answer is Disney, and it has been since 1996. For me, the more useful answer is the one most articles skip: the ABC channel you watch at home may belong to Sinclair, Nexstar, or Tegna, not Disney. Disney decides what shows ABC makes, but local owners decide your local news. Keep both in mind whenever you see a headline about “ABC.”
Frequently Asked Questions
No. ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company, while NBC is owned by Comcast through NBCUniversal. The two networks are rivals, along with CBS, which is owned by Paramount Skydance, and Fox, owned by Fox Corporation.
Not today. In 1953, ABC merged with United Paramount Theatres, a theater chain split off from Paramount Pictures, which is why the company was once called American Broadcasting-Paramount Theatres. Today, Paramount owns rival network CBS.
Disney paid $19 billion for Capital Cities/ABC. The deal was announced in 1995 and closed in February 1996. At the time, it was one of the largest media deals in US history.
Yes. Disney owns a majority of ESPN, and Hearst owns a minority stake. Disney gained ESPN through its 1996 purchase of Capital Cities/ABC, and many ESPN games air on ABC as “ESPN on ABC.”
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, also called ABC, is a different company. It is a public broadcaster funded by the Australian government. It has no connection to Disney or the American Broadcasting Company.
