Disney Profit Edges Up 1% On ESPN, Parks

(RTTNews) - Diversified media and entertainment conglomerate Walt Disney Co. (DIS) said Tuesday after the markets closed that its third quarter profit rose 1% from last year, as strong performance of its media networks and theme parks businesses more than offset the weakness of its movie division.

The company's quarterly earnings per share, excluding items, also came in above analysts' expectations, but its quarterly revenue fell shy of analysts' forecast.

Disney shares are currently losing 1.04% in after hours trading after closing the day's regular trading session at $67.05, up $1.03 or $1.56%. The shares trade in a 52-week range of $46.53 to $67.89.

In the last few quarters, Disney has benefited immensely from its media networks and theme parks businesses.

Revenue from the company's media networks segment, which includes cable network ESPN and broadcaster ABC, rose 5% year-over year to $5.4 billion, while the segment's operating income for the quarter grew 8% to $2.3 billion.

Operating income at Cable Networks rose 12% to $2.1 billion due to growth at ESPN, A&E Television Networks and the domestic Disney Channels. On the other hand, Operating income at Broadcasting fell 21% to $213 million for the quarter due to higher primetime programming costs, lower program sales and decreased advertising revenue.

Third quarter revenue from parks and resorts rose 7% to $3.7 billion, while segment's operating income increased 9% to $689 million, driven by growths at the company's domestic operations.

Revenue from the company's studio entertainment division fell 2% to $1.6 billion, and the division's operating income fell 36% to $201 million, mainly due to lower theatrical results that reflected pre-release marketing costs for The Lone Ranger and the performance of Marvel's Iron Man 3.

Consumer Products revenues for the quarter increased 4% to $775 million and the segment's operating income grew 5% to $219 million.

Interactive Media revenues for the quarter fell 7% to $183 million, and the division's operating loss widened to $58 million from $42 million last year.

For the third quarter ended June 29, 2013, the Burbank, California-based company reported net income of $1.85 billion or $1.01 per share, compared to $1.83 billion or $1.01 per share for the year-ago quarter.

The latest quarter results include $60 million of restructuring and impairment charges, which had a negative impact of $0.02 on EPS.

On average, 30 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to earn $1.01 per share for the third quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.

Segment operating income for the quarter increased 4% to $3.35 billion from $3.24 billion a year ago.

Revenue for the third quarter rose 4% to $11.58 billion from $11.09 billion in the same quarter last year. Twenty-seven analysts had a consensus revenue estimate of $11.64 billion for the third quarter.