The Walt Disney Co. announced Tuesday, Jan. 24, it would be buying longtime partner Pixar Animation Studio for $7.4 billion in stock.

“It’s the best move Disney has made since Walt died,” said Mark Morrell, a senior from Orem, Utah. “[Disney CEO Robert] Iger has more of the vision of Walt Disney, than [Michael] Eisner ever had.”

The deal will put Pixar CEO Steve Jobs in a powerful new role at Disney by making him its largest individual shareholder with a stake of about 7 percent, according to the Associated Press. Jobs, who owns more than half of Pixar’s shares and heads Apple Computer Inc., will become a Disney director.

“We have seven children [films] together,’’ Jobs said, from Toy Story in 1995 to Cars, set for release in June. “Keeping the family together is also a really nice benefit of this relationship.’’

“I think this is great for Disney, not only to have Pixar be part of the company, but to have Pixar influence the company,’’ Iger said. “It’s also possible we’ll look at Pixar and see not only how well it’s run but how well it lives and seek to overlay that influence on some of our other businesses.’’

Disney has had a deal co-financing and distributing animated films for Pixar for the past 12 years, according to the AP. Until recently, it appeared the companies would not renew the deal after it expires in June due to hostility between Jobs and former Disney CEO Michael Eisner.

The hostility between Jobs and Eisner originated in 2004 after Pixar wished to change the current deal that gave Disney 60 percent of the film profits, according to the AP.

As part of the new deal, Pixar demanded that it own 100 percent of all previously produced and future films. It will also now pay Disney a straight distribution fee rather than give it a percentage of profits, similar to the deal Star Wars creator George Lucas had with Twentieth Century Fox.

Executives from both companies said preserving Pixar as a separate entity was a top priority, and Pixar would stay in Emeryville, Calif., and retain its brand name.

As part of the merger agreement, Disney said it would issue 2.3 shares for each share of Pixar stock. At Jan. 31’s closing price of $25.99 for Disney, Pixar shareholders would get stock worth $59.78, a 4 percent premium over Pixar’s closing price of $57.57. The deal was announced after the markets closed for the day.

Disney said the deal would lower earnings over the next two years, but Pixar will help increase earnings by 2008.

Mergers do not always transition smoothly and can come with their own problems. Some feel the same might be true for this merger.

“Pixar is a high-quality company and I’m afraid that Disney will interfere or destroy what Pixar has done so successfully. That is, make good movies with great stories,” said David Jones, a senior from Valencia, Calif.