Disney Parks Reports Impressive Revenue Numbers for the Fiscal Fourth Quarter
The Walt Disney Company hosted its quarterly earnings call on Wednesday afternoon to discuss the company’s financial snapshot from the fiscal fourth quarter, which began in July 2023 and concluded on September 30, 2023. The earnings call began just after the closing bell on Wall Street, as CEO Bob Iger and interim CFO Kevin Lansberry shared numbers and news from across the company.
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On Wednesday afternoon, executives of The Walt Disney Company hosted its first quarterly earnings call of the second century of the company’s history. Just after the closing bell on Wall Street on Wednesday afternoon, Disney’s CEO Bob Iger and Kevin Lansberry, the company’s interim CFO, joined forces to share an inside look at the company’s performance and earnings over the fourth quarter of Disney’s fiscal year.
According to the report, bookings across Disney’s many theme park resorts continue to be strong. That’s despite economic forces against it as of late. Disney execs “feel good” about the company’s U.S. parks, as well as its international parks.
“We’re not seeing anything in terms of an economic hangover,” said Kevin Lansberry, Disney’s interim chief financial officer. “Domestically, we feel good. Internationally, we feel good.”
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Lansberry continued by saying that travelers are still making reservations for itineraries with Disney Cruise Line and that those bookings are “very, very strong” as well.
The company’s Parks and Experiences division reported revenue of $8.2 billion in the fiscal fourth quarter, an increase of 13% over last year during the same quarter. Operating income came in at $1.8 billion, an increase of 31% over the previous year.
The U.S. division of Parks and Experiences rose 9% to $808 million, in part due to growth at Disney Vacation Club and Disney Cruise Line. The closure of Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser, however, affected the domestic parks and resorts’ level of increase.
Earlier this year, Disney announced the planned closure of Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser, located near Disney’s Hollywood Studios at the Walt Disney World Resort in Central Florida. The closure was likely due in part to the cost of a minimum stay at the Star Wars-themed resort.
On the international side of Disney’s theme parks, income rose more than 100% to $441 million. The increase is due in part to guest spending at Shanghai Disney Resort and Hong Kong Disneyland, as attendance numbers continued to increase even as guest admission ticket prices increased as well.
For the fiscal year, The Walt Disney Company invested approximately $5 billion into its theme parks, its resorts, and across other properties as well. Earlier this year, the company unveiled plans to infuse $60 billion into its domestic and international theme park resorts, including the Walt Disney World Resort, Disneyland Resort, Disneyland Paris, Hong Kong Disneyland, Shanghai Disney Resort, and Tokyo Disney Resort.
