Disney Tops Streaming Expectations In Final Subscriber Report; Quarterly Results Otherwise Mixed

Core Insights - Disney's strong performance in streaming, particularly a significant increase in subscribers, helped mitigate challenges faced by its film studio and advertising sales in the fiscal fourth quarter [1] Streaming Performance - The total number of subscribers for Disney+ and Hulu reached 196 million, with a year-over-year increase of 12.4 million, exceeding Wall Street's expectations by over 2 million [2] - Operating income in the direct-to-consumer segment rose by $99 million to $352 million, with an 8% increase in revenue [2] Financial Results - Adjusted earnings per share decreased to $1.11 from $1.14 in the previous year but still surpassed analysts' expectations by six cents [3] - Total revenue remained flat year-over-year at $22.5 billion, falling short of forecasts [3] Advertising and Studio Performance - A $40 million shortfall in political ad spending compared to the previous year impacted results [4] - The film studio faced challenges due to tough comparisons with the same quarter last year, which featured successful releases like Inside Out 2 and Deadpool & Wolverine [4] - Content Sales/Licensing and Other revenue declined by $368 million [4] Theme Parks and Corporate Division - The Experiences division, which includes theme parks, saw a modest revenue increase of 6% to $8.77 billion [5] - A significant carriage dispute with YouTube TV led to a two-week blackout, although this issue was not reflected in the quarterly report as it occurred after the quarter ended [5]