Disney Profit Doubles due to Strong Movie Season

The Walt Disney Co. on Thursday reported profit for the fourth quarter ended September 30, 2006 that rose 89 percent to 36 cents per share.

The company said that growth at its Studio Entertainment, Theme Parks and Media Networks boosted the company’s earnings.

Huge success of movies and shows like "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" and "High School Musical" contributed to company’s earnings, the Burbank-based entertainment company said.

The company reported net income of $782 million for the quarter, more than double the 379-million-dollar or 19 cents per share profit recorded in the same quarter last year.

The revenue increased to 14 per cent to $8.784 billion from $7.734 billion in the same period last year, the second-largest media firm said.

For the whole year company’s earnings per share (EPS) jumped 34% to $1.64, compared to $1.22 in the previous year. The company reported net income of $3.374 billion for the year compared to $2.533 billion last year.

“Disney had a spectacular year, posting record revenues, record net income, and record cash flow,” said Bob Iger, president and chief executive officer of the Walt Disney Company. “It is a result of the incredible creativity at our company.”

The company's film unit posted quarterly profits of 214 million dollars, buoyed by Pirates and the animated comedy 'Cars' and revenues increased 33 per cent to $2.0 billion. The whole year revenue for the segment however, decreased 1 per cent to &7.5 billion still, income increased from $207 million to $729 million for the year.

Theme-park profits also rose 28 per cent to 396 million dollars, as revenues rose 8 per cent to 2.54 billion dollars. Park and Resorts revenue for the full year surged by 10 per cent to $9.9 billion and segment operating income soared 30 per cent to $1.5 billion.

The media conglomerate also reported free cash flow of $4.8 billion during the fiscal year 2006 compared to $2.4 billion in the prior year.

The results overcame analyst expectations of 34 cents per share on revenue of $8.694 billion.

The Walt Disney Co. said it had sold nearly a half million films over the Web through the Apple Computer Inc. iTunes store since September. In a conference call with analysts yesterday, Mr. Iger discussed some of the company’s further initiatives. He said, the company could settle a new deal with cable TV operator Comcast Corp. in the next week or so, a deal that probably would include delivering shows to customers online as well as on cable.

"It's clear that their investment in technology, not just in their standard business but in their new businesses, particularly broadband and in phone service area, provide us with significant opportunities as the owner of great brands and great content to really expand our relationship with them," Iger said in the conference call.

Disney will spend $350 million over the next five years to enlarge its video game business, said the chief financial officer, Tom Staggs. Development and spending in games segment will increase 30 percent next year, he added.

Disney shares on Thursday rose 48 cents to $33.58 at the close of trading on the New York Stock Exchange, a 52-week high, however it fell to $32.89 in after-hours trading.