The classic entertainment company’s surged by more than 8% in after-hours trading.
Disney (DIS) – Get Walt Disney Company Report stock soared on Wednesday after the popular entertainment company posted first-quarter earnings that exceeded all analyst expectations.
For the fiscal quarter ending on Jan. 1, Disney reported earnings of adjusted 1.06 cents per share on revenues of $21.82 billion.
A survey of Refinitiv analysts, in turn, were expecting 63 cents on $20.91 billion.
Net income from continuing operations hit a record $1.15 billion.
Beating All Odds And Expectations
Shares, in turn, surged by more than 8% in after-hours trading and are now at $148.
A large part of Disney’s success has to do with Disney+ subscriptions on the company’s streaming platform, which are a reported 129.8 million compared to an expected 125.75 million.
While average revenue per user (ARPU) was at $5.80 a month a year ago, it is at $6.68 per month now.
As easing COVID-19 restrictions brought more people into its parks, revenue from Disney’s parks, experiences and consumer products division brought in $7.2 billion — a year ago, that number was only at $3.6 billion.
“We’ve had a very strong start to the fiscal year, with a significant rise in earnings per share, record revenue and operating income at our domestic parks and resorts, the launch of a new franchise with ‘Encanto,'” Disney CEO Bob Chapek said in a statement.
“[There was also] a significant increase in total subscriptions across our streaming portfolio to 196.4 million, including 11.8 million Disney+ subscribers added in the first quarter.”
What’s Next For Disney?
As 2021 drew to a close, Disney closed all of its stores in Canada as well as a significant number in the U.S.
Consumer products revenue, in turn, fell by 9% to $1.5 billion but in general the company reported a very strong first quarter.
“We have a portfolio of distribution platforms, including powerful and growing streaming services,” Chapek said in the earnings call. “We have diverse revenue streams that span business models and industries which all are interconnected to create entertainments most powerful synergy machine.”
