Disney Earnings: Theme Parks Bounce Back While Disney+ Subscriber Count Slows Significantly

The Walt Disney Company DIS held its fourth quarter and full fiscal year earnings call today, which showcased the resiliency of the company as they continue to look forward to 2022 and a post-pandemic era. During the call, Disney discussed what’s coming up at the theme parks, a new subscriber count for Disney+, and what’s coming up next for the many studios the company owns. “As we close out the fourth quarter, I’m pleased to say it’s been a very productive year for the Walt Disney Company as we’ve made great strides in re-opening our business while also taking meaningful and innovative steps to position ourselves for continued long-term growth,” said Bob Chapek, CEO of The Walt Disney Company.

In quarter four Disney’s diluted earnings per share (EPS) from continuing operations for the quarter was income of $0.09 compared to a loss of $0.39 for the prior-year quarter. The diluted EPS for the quarter was income $0.37 compared to a loss of $0.20 in the prior-year quarter. Diluted EPS from continuing operations for the year ended October 2, 2021, was income of $1.11 compared to a loss of $1.57 in the prior year. Diluted EPS for the year increased 13 percent to $2.29 from $2.02 in the prior year. Results for the quarter ended October 2, 2021. The company reported a revenue of $18.53 billion in the quarter.

Disney announced during the call Disney+ has a total of 118.1 million subscribers to date. ESPN+ and Hulu have 17.1 million and 43.8 million subscribers, respectively.

The Disney Parks, Experiences and Products segment revenues for the quarter increased to $5.5 billion, compared to $2.7 billion in the prior-year quarter. The segment operating results increased $1.6 billion to an income of $640 million.

News about the Parks, Experiences and Products Segment

Quarter four was the first full quarter since the pandemic began with all of the parks around the world being open to guests. Disney Cruise Line also returned to service with all four ships setting sail. The Disney Wish is set to launch on its inaugural cruise in June 2022, with the inaugural season already nearly 90 percent booked.

Walt Disney World rolled out the new in-park planning service Disney Genie. “ The response to the service in just its first month has been extremely positive,” said Chapek. Disney mentioned nearly one-third of all park guests are upgrading to use Disney Genie+, a $15 per day, per person upcharge, to spend less time in lines around the four theme parks. Walt Disney World guest spending was up 30 percent in the quarter compared to pre-pandemic 2019. Disney Genie will launch at Disneyland soon.

One new experience coming to Walt Disney World is Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser, which opens March 1, 2022, has almost sold out for the first four months of “voyages” for the premium experience.

Disney has almost completed the reduction of a physical footprint for commerce outside of the theme parks with things like The Disney Store. Disney is pivoting to focus on its e-commerce platform, shopDisney.com, and retail partnerships such as Disney Store at Target, which will triple the number of locations by the end of the year.

News about Disney+

Marvel Studios’ Hawkeye debuts November 24, 2021, and Star Wars: The Book of Boba Fett debuts on December 29th on Disney+. Looking to 2022, Chapek said new content will mostly premier from July through September. There are also over 340 local original titles in various stages of development over the next few years.

Starting Friday, November 12, Disney+ will launch in South Korea and Taiwan, and in Hong Kong on November 16. “In just two short years, we are now in over 60 countries and more than 20 languages. Next year we plan to bring Disney plus to consumers in 50 plus additional countries, including in Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and South Africa,” said Chapek.

Disney is expecting that the fourth quarter of 2022 will be more indicative of what the slate of content releases will look like once it has content flowing from all of the creative engines for Disney+. The final quarter will be the first time in the history of the streaming service that it will have original content throughout the quarter from Disney, Marvel, Star Wars, Pixar, and National Geographic, including titles like Ms. Marvel, Andor, and Pinocchio. Disney believes they will be able to reach the subscriber target of 230 to 260 million by fiscal year 2024 that they laid out at last year’s investor day. They are also confident that Disney+ will reach profitability in fiscal 2024.