The Walt Disney Company has reported earnings for its fiscal third quarter ended July 3, 2021. It posted a profit for its parks, experiences and products segment, a first since the pandemic started.
Disney parks, experiences and products revenues for Q3 increased to $4.3 billion compared to $1.1 billion in Q3 2020. Operating results for the segment increased $2.2 billion to income of $356 million.
This has been attributed to an increase in visitors at domestic and international theme parks. Walt Disney World Resort and Shanghai Disney Resort were open for the entire quarter this year.
Disneyland Resort in California was open for 65 days and Disneyland Paris welcomed visitors for 19 days during Q3 this year.
Disney parks return to profit
In the same quarter last year, Disney World, Disneyland Resort and Disneyland Paris were closed. Shanghai Disney Resort was open for just 48 days.
Bob Chapek, CEO at the Walt Disney Company, said: “We ended the third quarter in a strong position, and are pleased with the company’s trajectory as we grow our businesses amidst the ongoing challenges of the pandemic.”
As for retail, growth in merchandise licensing was due to higher revenue from products based on Mickey and Minnie, Star Wars, Disney Princesses and Spider-Man.
Chapek said Disney continues to “introduce exciting new experiences at our parks and resorts worldwide, along with new guest-centric services”.
‘We ended Q3 in a strong position’
“Our direct-to-consumer business is performing very well, with a total of nearly 174 million subscriptions across Disney+, ESPN+ and Hulu at the end of the quarter, and a host of new content coming to the platforms,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Walt Disney Company is planning to relocate approximately 2,000 roles from Southern California to a new campus in Lake Nona, central Florida.
Josh D’Amaro, chairman of Disney parks, experiences and products, revealed the news in a letter to employees in July. “Expanding our already significant footprint in Florida makes sense,” D’Amaro said.
Images: Disney
