Walt Disney Announced Second Quarter Results

Walt Disney's Second Quarter Performance

Walt Disney (DIS), despite reporting a stronger than expected quarterly profit, slightly missed Wall Street's revenue forecasts. The company experienced a modest decline in sales alongside an increase in subscribers to its streaming platforms.

The company's non-GAAP earnings per share were set at $1.11 for the fourth quarter. This figure is $0.09 higher than analysts' estimates. However, the company's revenues declined by 0.5% year-over-year to $22.46 billion, falling $320 million short of expectations.

Disney's streaming business model is still growing. Total subscriptions for Disney+ and Hulu rose by 12.4 million from the previous quarter, reaching 196 million subscribers. Disney+ currently has 132 million subscribers, while Hulu's subscribers increased by 15%.

The average monthly revenue per paid Disney+ subscriber in the U.S. remained unchanged due to the increase in advertising revenues. The average monthly revenue per international Disney+ subscriber rose from $7.67 to $8.00 due to favorable changes in currency and subscriber numbers. However, Hulu experienced a slight decline in average revenue per user due to lower advertising revenues and subscriber mix effects.

Despite missing sales targets, the increased usage of streaming services and stable profit margins created an optimistic outlook for Disney’s chances of making money in the direct-to-consumer sector. However, following the announcement of the results, shares fell by 3% in pre-market trading.