Advertisement

Revenue up marginally at Disney, but profit dips slightly

Share

This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.

The Walt Disney Co., dragged down by restructuring costs, reported a modest drop in its fiscal first quarter profit.

The Burbank entertainment conglomerate reported net income of $844 million, or 44 cents per share, for the quarter ended Jan. 2, compared with earnings of $845 million, or 45 cents from the same period a year erlier. Revenue rose 1% to $9.7 billion. Excluding one-time items, earnings of 47 cents a share beat the 38-cent estimate of a consensus of analysts.

Advertisement

The company’s flagship Media Networks group, which includes the ABC broadcast network and cable properties ESPN and Disney Channel, posted a 11% rise in operating income for the quarter to $724 million from $655 million a year earlier. Revenue rose to $4.2 billion from $3.9 billion.

Analysts had been expecting modest first-quarter results for Disney’s television group. However, worldwide growth of the Disney Channel and higher affiliate and advertising fees at ESPN helped drive a 5% gain in operating income for the cable networks, which rose to $544 million for the quarter, up from $517 million a year earlier. The broadcasting group, which includes the ABC network and television stations, posted a 30% jump in operating income to $180 million, up from $138 million a year earlier. The previous year’s results included a bad debt charge associated with the bankruptcy of a buyer of Disney’s syndicated programs.

Theme parks reported a 2% drop in operating income to $375 million, from $382 million in the first quarter last year. Revenue remained essentially flat at $2.7 billion. The domestic parks saw a boost in attendance, which benefited from a shift in the timing of the New Year’s holiday from the fiscal second quarter into the first. However, attendance was off at Disneyland Paris.

The film studio staged a turnaround, reporting a 30% boost in operating income to $243 million, from $187 million a year earlier. Revenue was essentially flat at $1.9 billion. This reflected strong home entertainment sales of the best-picture nominated Disney/Pixar Animation film ‘Up’ and the romantic comedy ‘The Proposal.’

The Consumer Products group reported an 8% drop in operating income to $243 million, compared with $265 million a year earlier. Revenue fell 3% to $746 million, in part because of weaker sales of ‘High School Musical’ and ‘Hannah Montana’ merchandise.

The Interactive Media group saw a modest improvement, as it reported a loss of $10 million for the quarter compared with $45 million a year earlier. Sales decreased 29% to $221 million because of lower sales of video games and fewer titles released. Disney Online, however, saw subscription gains at its Club Penguin virtual world.

Advertisement

-- Dawn Chmielewski

Advertisement