#Disney revenue falls short as Disney+ subscriber growth slows

Disney’s revenue fell short of Wall Street’s expectations last quarter as subscribers to its Disney+ streaming service slowed — sending the stock down 4 percent in late trading.

In a double-whammy hit to investors, the Mouse House said revenue fell 13 percent in its fiscal second quarter to $15.61 billion as its theme parks continued to get slammed by the pandemic. Wall Street had been expecting sales of of $15.87 billion.

Disney also reported weaker-than-expected subscriber growth across its all-important streaming services as pandemic-weary consumers began venturing outside again.

At the end of the quarter ending on April 3, Disney+ racked up 103 million paid subscribers, 7 million less than analysts predicted.

Until now, the company had been beating expectations for Disney+, which launched in November 2019, thanks to exclusive shows and stuck-at-home consumers. In addition to popular series like “Wandavision” and “The Mandalorian,” Disney+ has also offered coveted new movies releases like “Raya and the Last Dragon” and “Soul.”

Netflix was also recently hit by a slowdown in new subscriber growth.

Net income from continuing operations rose to $912 million, or 50 cents a share from $468 million, or 26 cents a share in the year-ago period. Adjusted earnings per share totaled 79 cents — besting analysts’ expectations of 27 a share.

Despite major progress made toward reopening the economy, Disney’s theme parks were either closed or operating at reduced capacity during the quarter. Its cruise lines were also suspended. As a result, that unit’s revenue shrank 44 percent to $3.17 billion from year-ago revenue of $5.66 billion.

Disney chief executive officer Bob Chapek, while acknowledging the hit, said that business overall is on the mend.

“We’re pleased to see more encouraging signs of recovery across our businesses, and we remain focused on ramping up our operations while also fueling long-term growth for the company,” said Chapek, who credited a reopening of theme parks and increased movie and TV production in Hollywood.