Disney Shares Climb 9% After Earnings Beat, Plans $1.5B Stake in Epic Games
$Disney (DIS.US)$ shares soared 9.5% Thursday after the company delivered a better-than-expected quarterly earnings, painted a rosy outlook, boosted dividend and announced a plan to buy a $1.5 billion equity stake in Epic Games, the company behind the popular game Fortnite.
After the market closed on Wednesday, the company said it expects adjusted earnings for fiscal 2024 to reach $4.60 a year. That's higher than the 4.34 per share expected by analysts polled by CIQ, according to MT Newswires.
Excluding certain items, the company's earnings for the fiscal first quarter ended Dec. 31 reached $1.22. That exceeded the 99 cents a share expected by analysts, according to Benzinga. Revenue for the period was $23.5 billion, missing the market consensus of $23.6 billion reported by Benzinga.
The company's board declared a dividend of 45 cents per share, a 50% increase from the last dividend paid in January.
In a separate press release, Disney said it's collaborating with Epic Games as the entertainment company seeks to expand its footprint in a growing industry of more than 3 billion video game players worldwide.
Disney mobile games have 1.5 billion global installs, and to date, nine Disney games franchises have each grossed more than $1 billion in sales, the company said in a press release that announced its planned investment in Epic Games. The two companies will create an open games and entertainment universe under the deal that will be subject to regulatory approvals, Disney said.
The games and entertainment universe will allow consumers to play, watch, shop and engage with content, characters and stories from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars and Avatar, Disney said. Players, gamers and fans will be able to create their own stories and experiences, express their fandom , and share content with each other.
Excluding certain items, the company's earnings for the fiscal first quarter ended Dec. 31 reached $1.22. That exceeded the 99 cents a share expected by analysts, according to Benzinga. Revenue for the period was $23.5 billion, missing the market consensus of $23.6 billion reported by Benzinga.
The company's board declared a dividend of 45 cents per share, a 50% increase from the last dividend paid in January.
In a separate press release, Disney said it's collaborating with Epic Games as the entertainment company seeks to expand its footprint in a growing industry of more than 3 billion video game players worldwide.
Disney mobile games have 1.5 billion global installs, and to date, nine Disney games franchises have each grossed more than $1 billion in sales, the company said in a press release that announced its planned investment in Epic Games. The two companies will create an open games and entertainment universe under the deal that will be subject to regulatory approvals, Disney said.
The games and entertainment universe will allow consumers to play, watch, shop and engage with content, characters and stories from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars and Avatar, Disney said. Players, gamers and fans will be able to create their own stories and experiences, express their fandom , and share content with each other.
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Former editor at Bloomberg, ex-commentary editor at Lazard. Posts aren’t investment advice. Views are just mine.
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RDK79 : Good job Gov DeSantis.
MonkeyGee : I can imagine a metaverse with Disney but not Facebook.