Disney Profit Climbs 22%

(RTTNews) - Diversified media and entertainment conglomerate Walt Disney Co. (DIS) said Tuesday after the markets closed that its third quarter profit rose 22% from last year, helped by strong performance of all its business segments especially its movie division.

The company's quarterly earnings per share also came in above analysts' expectations as did its quarterly revenue.

Robert Iger, chairman and CEO of Walt Disney, said, "This quarter we delivered the highest EPS in the company's history, and we've now generated greater EPS in the first three quarters of FY 2014 than we have in any previous full fiscal year. We're extremely pleased with these results and we are also thrilled with the spectacular performance of Guardians of the Galaxy, which holds great promise as a new franchise for our company and once again reinforces the tremendous value of Marvel."

Disney shares are currently gaining 0.01% in after hours trading after closing the day's regular trading session at $86.75, down 49 cents. The shares trade in a 52-week range of $60.41 to $87.63.

Revenue from the company's media networks segment, which includes cable network ESPN and broadcaster ABC, rose 3% year-over year to $5.5 billion in the third quarter, while the segment's operating income for the quarter remained flat with last year at $2.3 billion.

Operating income at Cable Networks fell 7% to $1.94 billion due to decreases at ESPN. Operating income at Broadcasting jumped 66% to $354 million for the quarter due to an increase in affiliate fees and higher income from program sales.

Third quarter revenue from parks and resorts rose 8% to $4.0 billion, while segment's operating income increased 23% to $848 million, due to growth at the company's domestic parks and resorts.

Revenue from the company's studio entertainment division surged 14% to $1.8 billion in the third quarter, and the division's operating income jumped 104.5% to $411 million, due to increases in worldwide home entertainment and international theatrical distribution. The increase in worldwide home entertainment reflected the success of Frozen, while higher international theatrical distribution results reflected the performance of Frozen, Captain America 2: The Winter Soldier and Maleficent.

Consumer Products revenues for the quarter increased 16% to $902 million and the segment's operating income grew 25% to $273 million.

Interactive revenues for the quarter climbed 45% to $266 million, and the division's operating results improved from a loss of $58 million to income of $29 million.

For the third quarter ended June 28, 2014, the Burbank, California-based company reported net income of $2.25 billion or $1.28 per share, compared to $1.85 billion or $1.01 per share for the year-ago quarter.

Excluding certain items, adjusted EPS for the third quarter increased 24% to $1.28 from $1.03 in the prior year quarter.

On average, 29 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to earn $1.17 per share for the third quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.

Segment operating income for the quarter increased 15% to $3.86 billion from $3.35 billion a year ago.

Revenue for the third quarter rose 8% to $12.47 billion from $11.58 billion in the same quarter last year. Twenty-seven analysts had a consensus revenue estimate of $12.16 billion for the third quarter.