Diversified media and entertainment conglomerate Walt Disney Co. (DIS) said Tuesday after the markets closed that its second quarter profit rose 32% from last year, helped by strong performance of its media networks and theme parks businesses as well as a turn around in its movie division.
The company's quarterly earnings per share, excluding items, also came in above analysts' expectations as did its quarterly revenue.
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 6% year-over year to $5.0 billion, while the segment's operating income for the quarter grew 8% to $1.9 billion.
Operating income at Cable Networks rose 15% to $1.7 billion due to growth at ESPN. On the other hand, Operating income at Broadcasting fell 40% to $138 million for the quarter due to higher primetime programming costs and a decrease in advertising revenue at the ABC Television Network.
Second quarter revenue from parks and resorts rose 14% to $3.3 billion, while segment's operating income jumped 73% to $383 million, driven by growths at the company's domestic operations.
Revenue from the company's studio entertainment division increased 13% to $1.3 billion, and the division's operating income improved to a profit of $118 million from a loss of $84 million last year. The improvement was driven by lower film impairments, due to the write-down on John Carter in the prior year, and an increase in worldwide theatrical distribution.
Worldwide theatrical distribution results reflected the strong performance of Oz The Great And Powerful and Wreck-it Ralph in the current quarter.
In December, Walt Disney completed its acquisition of Lucasfilm Ltd. LLC in a deal valued at about $4.06 billion. The deal includes the "Star Wars" film franchisee.
There were reports last month that Disney has decided to halt video game development at its Lucasfilm division in its efforts to cut costs. The company's video game unit LucasArts, established in 1982, will now focus on a licensing model instead of internal development, the reports said. The unit's catalog included "Lego Star Wars" and "Star Wars Battlefront." Disney expects the change to minimize the company's risk ''while achieving a broader portfolio of quality 'Star Wars' games.''
And on Monday, video-game publisher Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) and Disney announced a new multi-year exclusive licensing agreement to develop and publish globally new games based on Star Wars characters and storylines. Under the agreement, EA will develop and publish new Star Wars titles for a core gaming audience, spanning all interactive platforms and the most popular game genres, while Disney will retain certain rights to develop new titles within the mobile, social, tablet and online game categories.
Consumer Products revenues for the quarter increased 12% to $763 million and the segment's operating income surged 35% to $200 million.
Interactive Media revenues for the quarter grew 8% to $194 million, and the division's operating loss narrowed to $54 million from $70 million last year.
For the second quarter ended March 30, 2013, the Burbank, California-based company reported net income of $1.51 billion or $0.83 per share, compared to $1.14 billion or $0.63 per share for the year-ago quarter.
The latest quarter results include $102 million of tax benefits related to pre-tax earnings in prior years, a $10 million gain on the sale of a business and $61 million of restructuring charges. Collectively, those items had a net positive impact on EPS of $0.04 in the latest quarter.
Excluding items, adjusted earnings for the second quarter increased 36% to $0.79 per share from $0.58 per share in the prior year quarter.
On average, 28 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to earn $0.76 per share for the second quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.
Segment operating income for the quarter increased 29% to $2.51 billion from $1.95 billion a year ago.
Revenue for the second quarter rose 10% to $10.55 billion from $9.63 billion in the same quarter last year. Twenty-six analysts had a consensus revenue estimate of $10.48 billion for the second quarter.
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June 05, 2026 16:18 ET A busy week for economic news flow saw a slew of reports being released that reflected the trends in the U.S. labor market. In Europe, economic growth and inflation data gained attention as the European Central Bank and Bank of England head for policy session later in the month. In Asia, the monetary policy session of the Indian central bank was in focus as the country, a major oil importer, reels under the pressures of a weaker rupee and rising inflation.