Bob Iger poses with Mickey Mouse for the 90th Mickey’s Spectacular at The Shrine Auditorium on October 6, 2018 in Los Angeles.
Valerie Macon | AFP | beautiful pictures
LOS ANGELES – Although shareholders will still be in to see how many people sign up by Disney suite of streaming services added in first-quarter financials, focus of Wednesday’s earnings will be on the return of CEO Bob Iger.
His recovery coincided with a controversial proxy wars with activist investor Nelson Peltz and watched a rough year for the company’s stock, as soaring streaming costs and a meager theatrical listing ate into profits.
This is Iger’s first earnings call since early 2020, and his words will resonate for the future of the media company. Investors are eager to know the details of its plans to restructure the company.
Since his return, Disney stock has outperformed most members of Dow Industrials. Shares of the company rose about 20%, on par with Dow Inc., and just below Boeing. Additionally, Disney’s gain is about five times that of the S&P 500’s 4% gain over the same period.
Here’s what analysts expect:
- Earnings per share: 78 cents expected, according to survey of analysts Refinitiv
- Revenue: $23.37 billion expected, according to Refinitiv
- Total Disney+ subscribers: 161.1 million expected, according to StreetAccount
Last quarter, with Bob Chapek at the helm, Disney sought to assuage investor expectations for the new financial year, forecasting revenue growth of less than 10%. As part of that warning, the company noted that its Disney+ platform could see diminished growth going forward.
In November, reporting company $1.5 billion operating loss at the direct-to-consumer unit, which includes streaming services. For the quarter, Wall Street predicts a slightly smaller loss of $1.2 billion.
As for subscriber growth, analysts predict total Disney+ users will be 161.1 million, down about 3 million from the previous quarter. Expectations are one recent price increase cause some consumers to abandon the service.
Revenue and operating income at Disney’s theme parks can increase year over year as the holiday season often drives significant visitor numbers to local and international attractions. In addition, the company released the blockbuster hit “Avatar: The Way of Water” hits theaters in December, potentially boosting theatrical sales year-over-year.
