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Thursday, November 06, 2008
Disney's Shares Fall After Weak Profit Report
Kathryn Glass
FOXBusiness
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) reported disappointing earnings due to a decrease in revenue from its studio entertainment division and weak numbers overall as expenses increased.
The company weighed in with adjusted earnings of 43 cents per share on $9.45 billion in revenue for the fourth quarter. Net Income for the quarter was $760 million while GAAP earnings came in at 40 cents per share, down 9% from profit of 44 cents per share reported in the year-ago quarter.
This was a disappointment to analysts, who had expected profit of 49 cents per share, according to a poll by Thomson Reuters. The company posted higher than expected revenue, however; analysts had predicted Disney would post $9.3 billion in revenue.
Earnings per share for the year came to $2.28, slightly higher than last year’s earnings of $2.25 per share.
Revenue from studio entertainment sank to $1.45 billion, a 5% decrease from the same period one year ago.
The entertainment giant reported revenue of $2.97 billion from its parks and resorts department in the fourth quarter, a 7% improvement from the year prior -- but profits fell 4%. Revenue from Disney’s media networks rose 4% to $4.21 billion in the fourth quarter, and increased 7% for the year from $15.1 billion to $16.12 billion -- but here too, profits fell 4%. Advertising revenue increased at Lifetime network, as well as at ESPN, and domestic Disney Channel; however, advertising dollars for broadcast networks ABC and at the company’s owned television stations decreased, while production costs rose.
Shares of Disney were trading 13% lower on Thursday after the market closed, and Dow Jones Newswires reported that the company was planning to unveil discounts for some consumers at its parks.






