Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) has dipped 3.6% off its fiscal fourth-quarter earnings as it reversed to a profit, but missed analyst expectations on top and bottom lines as well as on streaming subscribers.
Revenues rose 26% to $18.53 billion, led by a sharp rebound in the parks/products business. But analysts had forecast 27.6% growth to $18.77 billion.
And the company missed on profitability though it engineered a turnaround from last year's pandemic Q4: Net income from continuing operations swung to a gain of $160 million from a year-ago loss of $710 million.
Operating income had more than doubled, to $1.59 billion from $606 million.
Meanwhile Disney+ reported 118.1 million subscribers - up by 2.1 million (and up 60% year-over-year) but substantially missing expectations for 125 million subs. ESPN+ subs also grew 66% Y/Y, to 17.1 million, and Hulu subs rose 20% to 43.8 million (SVOD Only up 22% to 39.7 million; Live TV + SVOD dipped to 4 million from 4.1 million).
Average monthly revenue per paid sub fell again for Disney+, to $4.12 from $4.52. For ESPN+ it rose 4%, to $4.74 from $4.54; for Hulu SVOD it ticked up to $12.75 from $12.59; and for Live TV + Hulu it rose 18% to $84.89.
“As we celebrate the two-year anniversary of Disney+, we’re extremely pleased with the success of our streaming business, with 179 million total subscriptions across our DTC portfolio at the end of fiscal 2021 and 60% subscriber growth year-over-year for Disney+," CEO Bob Chapek says. "We continue to manage our DTC business for the long-term, and are confident that our high-quality entertainment and expansion into additional markets worldwide will enable us to further grow our streaming platforms globally.”
Revenue by segment: Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution, $13.08 billion (up 9%); Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, $5.45 billion (up 99%).
Operating income by segment: Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution, $947 million (down 39%); Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, $640 million (up from year-ago -$945 million).
Cash from operations rose 58% to $2.63 billion, and free cash flow rose 62% to $1.522 billion.