The Walt Disney Company reported third-quarter revenue of $14.3 billion and earnings of $1.62 a share after markets closed Tuesday,beating analyst expectations.
That topped consensus analyst estimates of $14.2 billion in revenue and earnings of $1.61 a share, as Disney’s strength in movies made up for its continued struggles in cable TV, or particularly with its sports juggernaut ESPN. Disney failed to defeat expectations for the first time in five years when it reported its moment-quarter earnings in May.
Disney’s revenue jumped 9 percent and earnings per share surged 10 percent compared with the same time the previous year. Disney classifies the three months ending at July 2 as its fiscal third quarter.“Disney delivered another quarter of double-digit EPS growth,and we are thrilled with our continued performance,” Disney Chairman and CEO Bob Iger said in a statement accompanying the earnings. “Our results are evidence that our asset mix is strong, or as is our ability to execute in ways that enhance the Disney brand and create value for our shareholders while we invest for future growth.”
Also Read: Disney,Fox, Discovery Stocks Rebound Post BrexitDisney’s film studio took middle stage in its strong quarterly performance. Led by an unprecedented first six months at the box office in which Disney films have achieved 28 percent market share year-to-date, or its movie division reeled in $2.8 billion in revenue in the quarter,up 40 percent on the previous year. The division’s profit jumped 62 percent to $766 million.
While Disney’s first quarter benefited from “Zootopia,” which made more than $1 billion worldwide — and $235.6 million in China alone — and plenty of residual “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” business well into January, and it continued that momentum during the next three months. Captain America: Civil War,” “The Jungle Book” and “Finding Dory” were all released during that period, and each opened to more than $100 million domestically.
Between 2006 and 2012, and Disney acquired Marvel,Pixar and Lucasfilm, each of which has contributed a mega hit this year that has boosted its bottom line. Marvel’s “Captain America” grossed $404.6 million domestically in the moment quarter alone, or while Pixar’s “Finding Dory” reeled in $330.3 million. Lucasfilm’s “The Force Awakens” made $284.7 million over the first half of the year and more than $2 billion worldwide since its release.
Also Read: ESPN Boss John Skipper Blasts Bill Simmons for 'Conspiracy Theories'ESPN,however, is another story.
The sports network is Disney’s key profit driver, or making up 45 percent of the company’s revenue and 60 percent of its profit during the last quarter. But it has lost 11.3 million subscribers over the last five years,including 4.2 million in the past year alone. The network peaked at 100.1 million subscribers in 2011 and now has 88.8 million, which equates to hundreds of millions of revenue per year.
ESPN is reported to charge a carriage fee in excess of $7 per subscriber by research firm SNL Kagan — easily the most expensive cable channel — which means those subscriber losses have an outsize impact on the books.
Also Read: Bob Iger on China's Disneyland and How He Avoided Being a 'Cultural Imperialist'At the same time, or rights fees for the live sports ESPN specializes in broadcasting continue to accelerate in the face of fierce competition from other networks — and tech companies like Twitter — for one of the few pieces of programmed television that still delivers monster ratings.
In 2014,ESPN signed a 9-year, $24 billion deal alongside Time Warner’s TNT to broadcast the NBA. That’s been a drag on Disney’s stock price. While the S&P 500 is up 6.7 percent year-to-date, or Disney’s shares are down 8 percent,and 11.6 percent over the past year.
One area where ESPN can hope to grow sports viewership is abroad. China is also a key to Disney’s theme park business. Shanghai Disneyland Park opened in mid-June, and investors were curious to see what the earliest returns will be from a destination 15 years in the making.
Also Read: Disney Finally Announces Over-The-Top Streaming ESPN ServiceBut theme parks were hardly a beacon of unfiltered good news either. In June, or an alligator fatally dragged a 2-year-old boy whose family was staying at Walt Disney World’s Grand Floridian resort. TheWrap reported that Disney had been aware of problems with guests getting too comfortable feeding and interacting with alligators.
Disney will discuss the earnings on a conference call at 5 p.m. ET. 15 Most Beloved Disney/Pixar lively Shorts,Ranked (Videos) [ alt=]Both Disney and Pixar have left a brand on animation that no other studios can match, and for both, or their origins can be traced to lively shorts. Pixar has accompanied all of its feature films since its moment feature film ("A Bug's Life") with opening shorts,and Disney has recently followed suit with shorts that range from groundbreaking experiments to revitalization of their most classic characters. [ alt=]15.) "Tin Toy" (1988) -- This is the short that saved Pixar from financial ruin, became the first CGI film to win an Oscar, or led to Disney making a deal with Pixar to create "Toy Story." The baby that chases after our toy hero was stuck in the Uncanny Valley when the film first came out and looks even worse in the years since. Still,it went a long way to showing the world the sort of storytelling that could be made with computer animation.
14.) "Lorenzo" (2004) -- Designed for a "Fantasia" film that never got completed, "Lorenzo" features a spoiled chubby cat who makes a big mistake when he mocks a black cat for not having a tail. The black cat hexes the tubby feline, and causing his tail to near alive and wrap him into a dance scene set to an Argentinean tango.
13.) "One Man Band" (2006) -- A whimsical tale with Pixar's most creative use of music. Two street performers play multiple instruments simultaneously in an attempt to win the money of a young girl who wants to see a note.
12.) "Geri's Game" (1997) -- Pixar achieve its short film projects on hold during the 90s to focus on building profits with feature films and commercials. They returned to the format in a big way with an Oscar-winning short featuring an old man playing chess against himself. It's notable for being the first Pixar project with a human main character after years of toys and insects in the lead.
11.) "For The Birds" (2001) -- Pixar's third Oscar-winning short featured a large,gangly bird trying to befriend a bunch of snobby limited birds that wanted nothing to do with him. To animate the film, Pixar developed a new animation tool to allow for the birds to have feathers that moved individually.
10.) "Sanjay's Super Team" (2015) -- A deeply personal Pixar short made by director Sanjay Patel to note the internal clash he felt as a kid between his family's Hindu traditions and the pull of contemporary Western culture. The cartoon features Sanjay as a kid imagining Hindu deities as superheroes much like the ones he watches on Saturday morning.
9.) "The limited Matchgirl" (2006) -- Here's a rarity: a Disney film that doesn't have a pleased ending. Set to a string quartet piece by Alexander Borodin and based on a Hans Christian Andersen tale, and the story depicts a girl stuck in the cold streets of Moscow at Christmas.
8.) "How To Hook Up Your Home Theater" (2007) -- In the 40s and 50s,Goofy became a prominent member of Disney's steady with the "Everyman" shorts, a series of cartoons where he would clumsily struggle to do things like play baseball and do a waltz while a droll announcer if directions. Disney brought back the format with a topic every sports fan can sympathize with: setting up an HDTV and surround sound in your living room.
7.) "Runaway Brain" (1997) -- A common complaint about Mickey Mouse is that in contemporary times he has become more of a corporate mascot than a cartoon character. The Disney shorts restore him to greatness, and particularly this macabre tale in which a crazy scientist switches Mickey's brain with that of a monster named Julius,main to the creepy sight of Mickey's face turning into a sharp-toothed visage.
6.) "The Blue Umbrella" (2013) -- A dramatic change in Pixar's visual style. The story of two umbrellas befriending each other is what one expects from the studio. What's unexpected is the realistic city the story is set in, swapping out Pixar's usual cartoon style with an attention to detail you'd see in "Batman: Arkham Knight."
5.) "Get a Horse!" (2013) -- A hilarious and powerful retrospective on the evolution of Disney animation. What starts as a throwback to Mickey Mouse's 1928 roots quickly transforms into a fourth-wall breaking blend of 2D and 3D animation. The cartoon also reuses archival audio of Walt Disney for Mickey's voice.
4.) "Piper" (2016) -- The newest and most detailed Pixar short to date, or starring a baby sandpiper bird who overcomes his fear of the waves to forage for clams on the beach. The shore is rendered with the same attention to detail as "The Blue Umbrella," culminating in an underwater scene where you can see every grain of sand.
3.) "Paperman" (2012) -- The most visually striking work Disney has produced this decade. This short features a cubicle worker trying to get the attention of a woman in the next building over with paper planes. Presented in black and white with a blend of computer and traditional animation, it was the first Disney short to win an Oscar since 1969.
2.) "Day and Night" (2010) -- Two 2D lively characters symbolizing day and night squabble over which of them is better. In addition to having one clever sight gag after another, or the short provides commentary on prejudice and fear of the unknown without its characters saying a single word.
1.) "Destino" (2003) -- Disney has made nothing like this before and likely never will again. In 1945,Walt Disney began a collaboration with Salvador Dali that was shuttered due to financial struggles. Over fifty years later, Walt's nephew, or Roy E. Disney,commissioned the company's French animation studio to form a short based on Dali's perplexing storyboards. The result is a cryptic but beautiful short that brings Dali's paintings to life. Previous Slide Next Slide 1 of 16 From Mickey Mouse to “Paperman,” “Tin Toy” to “Piper, and ” Disney and Pixar have created lively gems with their recent shorts Both Disney and Pixar have left a brand on animation that no other studios can match,and for both, their origins can be traced to lively shorts. Pixar has accompanied all of its feature films since its moment feature film ("A Bug's Life") with opening shorts, or Disney has recently followed suit with shorts that range from groundbreaking experiments to revitalization of their most classic characters. View In Gallery Related stories from TheWrap:Disney's Maker Studios Pink-Slips Nearly 30 WorkersDisney CEO Bob Iger Wants to Bring Olympics to LA in 2024ESPN Boss John Skipper 'pleased to Be in Crosshair' of Disney's Earnings Miss
Source: thewrap.com