Quarterly Profit Up 14 Percent at Disney

BURBANK: The Walt Disney Company reported a fourth-quarter profit of $1.24 billion, which is 14-percent higher than the year-ago comparison.

Revenues for the quarter were up 3 percent, reaching $10.78 billion. Gains were led by the parks and resorts segment, which was up 9 percent in the quarter with its revenues and 18 percent in the quarter with its operating income. The media networks contributed $4.88 billion with revenues, up 2 percent, and $1.57 billion with operating income, up 7 percent. The studio entertainment segment was down 32 percent for its operating income, to $80 million, and down 4 percent with its revenues, to $1.40 billion.

For the full year, the company’s revenues were up 3 percent to $42.3 billion and net income was up 18 percent to $5.68 billion. Media networks revenues for the year increased 4 percent to $19.4 billion and segment operating income increased 8 percent to $6.6 billion. Within the cable networks unit, operating income grew 9 percent to $5.7 billion, thanks to growth at ESPN and the worldwide Disney Channels. Operating income at the broadcasting unit remained relatively flat at $915 million for the year, as lower production and programming costs and higher affiliate and royalty revenue were offset by lower ad revenue and higher equity losses at Hulu.

“Fiscal 2012 was a great year creatively, financially and strategically, resulting in record revenue, net income, and earnings per share,” said Robert A. Iger, Disney’s chairman and CEO. “The addition of Lucasfilm will further fuel Disney’s creative engine across our company to create additional value for our shareholders and we’re confident the Company is well positioned to continue our strong performance and growth. “