Disney revenue better than expected as it starts climbing out of Covid-19

 

Walt Disney reported quarterly revenue that was better than Wall Street expected as live sports returned to ESPN and the company's theme parks began recovering from shutdowns due to coronavirus.

By Lisa Richwine and Akanksha Rana
(Reuters) - Walt Disney Co on Thursday reported quarterly revenue that was better than Wall Street expected as live sports returned to ESPN and the company's theme parks began recovering from shutdowns due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Overall revenue fell 23% to $14.71 billion (£11.22 billion) in the quarter, above analysts' average estimate of about $14.2 billion.

Disney's adjusted loss per share, excluding one-time items of 20 cents, also beat Wall Street expectations of a more drastic 70 cents per share loss.

Disney shares jumped 5.6% to $143.12 in after-hours trading.

One year after it launched the Disney+ online streaming subscription to compete with Netflix Inc, Disney said the service had signed up 73.7 million subscribers. Hulu had 36.6 million customers and ESPN+ had 10.3 million.

Disney+ faces a test, however, as a one-year free trial offer for millions of Verizon Communications Inc customers expired on Thursday. Disney aims to gain new signups with the release of a "Star Wars" Lego holiday special this month, Pixar movie "Soul" at Christmas, and Marvel series "WandaVision" in January.

Disney's businesses outside of streaming have been hammered by the global COVID-19 pandemic. The outbreak forced the company to close theme parks, suspend cruises and delay movie releases, and it left ESPN without major sports broadcasts. Disney said the pandemic reduced profit at its parks units by $2.4 billion.