News Disney’s Q3 FY25 Earnings Results Webcast

[doctornick]

I admittedly don't follow the corporate news that closely, but my general evaluation of the Iger era is very similar.

Sure, I wouldn't say that it has been a great period for the domestic parks, particularly WDW. Overall, though, Disney has come through a very challenging period for media companies as one of the main winners that has avoided being swallowed up by another company and selectively dismembered (which was a very distinct possibility) and looks to be viable going forward. The decline of linear is what it is, but I am honestly surprised how Disney has managed to position itself as one of the main players in DTC. It may never generate the revenue linear did, but that decline in revenue was going to happen either way and Disney now seems pretty secure moving on from it.

I am not a fan of the all the upcharges and many of the new additions at the parks. I have to give them credit, though, for keeping those things humming along even during challenging periods. Put Disney's results next to Comcast's, and you certainly don't see the latter streaking ahead and Disney being left in the dust as a lot of the commentary on here would suggest, even with the opening of Epic.

I get people thinking the parks are being mismanaged. Talk about the company overall having been run into the ground by Iger, though, seems a little absurd.

That's pretty much my take. The market being "down" on Disney seems related to a general concern for the prospects of legacy media, especially companies that had been dependent on linear and movie box office for significant revenues. That's not really a Disney specific critique as much as broadly being down on the entire segment. "The market" doesn't want to buy Disney as eagerly because it isn't viewed as having "enough" growth potential compared to other types of companies unburdened by legacy components (e.g. Netflix).

But that's a far cry from saying that Disney is poorly run or in bad economic shape. Quite the opposite, as the company has IMHO positioned itself extremely well going forward compared to peer companies. Streaming is a major player for Disney, linear/movies are hit and miss but doing okay in the new reality and not a black hole, the parks and consumer products provide a solid revenue stream. The company as a whole is wildly profitable even if it is not making as much as it was in some brighter days but has weathered the pandemic and media landscape changes very well. Going forward, it doesn't look like there is any huge threat that would prevent the company to continue to survive and make money (though who knows when another COVID level disruption might occur).

In this day and age, stock prices for established solid companies are often pretty pointless in describing the health of the company since prices are so much more focused on growth potential as opposed to "simply" being consistently profitable/stable.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

I admittedly don't follow the corporate news that closely, but my general evaluation of the Iger era is very similar.

Sure, I wouldn't say that it has been a great period for the domestic parks, particularly WDW. Overall, though, Disney has come through a very challenging period for media companies as one of the main winners that has avoided being swallowed up by another company and selectively dismembered (which was a very distinct possibility) and looks to be viable going forward. The decline of linear is what it is, but I am honestly surprised how Disney has managed to position itself as one of the main players in DTC. It may never generate the revenue linear did, but that decline in revenue was going to happen either way and Disney now seems pretty secure moving on from it.

I am not a fan of the all the upcharges and many of the new additions at the parks. I have to give them credit, though, for keeping those things humming along even during challenging periods. Put Disney's results next to Comcast's, and you certainly don't see the latter streaking ahead and Disney being left in the dust as a lot of the commentary on here would suggest, even with the opening of Epic.

I get people thinking the parks are being mismanaged. Talk about the company overall having been run into the ground by Iger, though, seems a little absurd.

Believe it or not…I actually totally agree with you

And I might be the NUMBER ONE Iger critic here…I’m definitely on the podium…at least…

He has actually exceeded my wildest expectations from when he started…has done a lot to make Disney relevant at the top of the worlds they dabble in. Not flawless…nobody is…but very good record.

My issue is that their current decision making and strategic direction is bad. To the point where they appear to be winging with impulse and reversals. Not sound.

It’s not bobs fault…it’s the BOARD’s fault. Why? Because these guys have a shelf life of effectiveness and he’s past his. Exaclty like the prior guy and the lesson was not learned. Do some research, board…unless you’re a puppet…which of course is the other big problem.

At 20 years, rich ego driven humans are all the same: they believe they know everything, they believe their decisions are perfect, and that the world is watching/cant function without them. That’s a strikeout due to hubris.

Bob should make a tree and …and it should have been long ago. The cracks in bad Disney management don’t show up tomorrow…they have the luxury of getting a pass for years. Fix the cracks…don’t let the dam break

 

[BrianLo]

The decline of linear is what it is, but I am honestly surprised how Disney has managed to position itself as one of the main players in DTC. It may never generate the revenue linear did, but that decline in revenue was going to happen either way and Disney now seems pretty secure moving on from it.

DTC Revenue is actually overtaking the peak Media Networks in raw dollars today. Media Networks included BOTH linear media and Sports.

Sure there is inflation, but I have no doubts revenue will overtake it in full post inflationary sense. Especially when an actual ESPN product is introduced.

This is why I largely think everyone is missing the forest for the trees. There isn’t a revenue concern. DTC has completed the pivot on that one metric. Operating income can and already has started to follow. Much as it did for Netflix.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

DTC Revenue is actually overtaking the peak Media Networks in raw dollars today. Media Networks included BOTH linear media and Sports.

Sure there is inflation, but I have no doubts revenue will overtake it in full post inflationary sense. Especially when an actual ESPN product is introduced.

This is why I largely think everyone is missing the forest for the trees. There isn’t a revenue concern. DTC has completed the pivot on that one metric. Operating income can and already has started to follow. Much as it did for Netflix.

The chatbots that run the trading floor don’t like the margins of streaming…

For Netflix…that had one product and the number is what it is?…fine

For the others that run high overhead other businesses? No. They don’t like it.

It will be embraced when they lock people in for high fee and tons of ad revenue guaranteed to be shown. So cable…basically

What can go wrong there?

 

[BrianLo]

The chatbots that run the trading floor don’t like the margins of streaming…

Definitely; this seems wide spread. The imagined premium of DTC dropped out from under the company in 2022 and it has never returned. Which is why I’ll park this commentary at just the operating income and point out that I continue to see a trend that for whatever reason the market is awfully sour on. Eventually it starts to matter to the bottom line.

DTC OI
2022 -(4,015)
2023 -(2,612)
2024 +143
2025 +1,300

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Definitely; this seems wide spread. The imagined premium of DTC dropped out from under the company in 2022 and it has never returned. Which is why I’ll park this commentary at just the operating income and point out that I continue to see a trend that for whatever reason the market is awfully sour on. Eventually it starts to matter to the bottom line.

DTC OI
2022 -(4,015)
2023 -(2,612)
2024 +143
2025 +1,300

For Disney it’s overhead and which baskets they have their eggs in.

I’ll leave it at that…because the doomsday scenarios would be a blood bath.

 

[TheGenXer]

Go woke print money.

 

[MisterPenguin]

Transcript's up...

https://thewaltdisneycompany.com/app/uploads/2025/08/q3-fy25-earnings-transcript.pdf

 

[ctrlaltdel]

Definitely; this seems wide spread. The imagined premium of DTC dropped out from under the company in 2022 and it has never returned. Which is why I’ll park this commentary at just the operating income and point out that I continue to see a trend that for whatever reason the market is awfully sour on. Eventually it starts to matter to the bottom line.

DTC OI
2022 -(4,015)
2023 -(2,612)
2024 +143
2025 +1,300

The big difference is interest rates. We had a decade plus of very low interest rates starting with the great recession through COVID. This led to very cheap borrowing, especially for blue chip companies like Disney with stellar credit. Made it easy to spend billions of dollars on potential growth markets like streaming and Wall Street recoginized that.

Once inflation hit and the Fed had to raise interest rates, Wall Street quickly became more interested in actual profits and reducing debt load than unrealized growth. In all honesty Disney did a great job quickly pivoting to profitability, obviously driven by the fact they did what they had to do to get subs for D+/Hulu.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

The big difference is interest rates. We had a decade plus of very low interest rates starting with the great recession through COVID. This led to very cheap borrowing, especially for blue chip companies like Disney with stellar credit. Made it easy to spend billions of dollars on potential growth markets like streaming and Wall Street recoginized that.

Once inflation hit and the Fed had to raise interest rates, Wall Street quickly became more interested in actual profits and reducing debt load than unrealized growth. In all honesty Disney did a great job quickly pivoting to profitability, obviously driven by the fact they did what they had to do to get subs for D+/Hulu.

Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than smart…which one do you think Bob is?

 

[SamusAranX]

The chatbots that run the trading floor don’t like the margins of streaming…

For Netflix…that had one product and the number is what it is?…fine

For the others that run high overhead other businesses? No. They don’t like it.

It will be embraced when they lock people in for high fee and tons of ad revenue guaranteed to be shown. So cable…basically

What can go wrong there?

I am honestly perplexed as to why the big players haven’t gone that way in the route of streaming.

Sign a 2 year contract, get a way lower yearly or monthly price (but pay a penalty for cancelling). It’s shelf stable revenue

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

I am honestly perplexed as to why the big players haven’t gone that way in the route of streaming.

Sign a 2 year contract, get a way lower yearly or monthly price (but pay a penalty for cancelling). It’s shelf stable revenue

Because cable sucked and we were all trapped?

My stance is they can’t because it’s easy to cancel (unlike cable) and there is a ton of competition (unlike cable and its regional monopolies)…so it’s trying to put the gravy train back on the tracks when there’s no gravy

 

[flynnibus]

Disney stock as of right now is worth what it was 10 years ago.

That is not the sign of a well run healthy company.

10 years ago Disney was also heavily invested in markets that basically are worthless now or a shell of themselves.

Terrestrial Radio, Broadcast TV, Music, Cable TV, print... and had no footprint in the most of the emerging markets of the next two decades.

Yet, now they are leaders in content libraries, they have leaders in DTC products, they are aligning with others in content creation, new growth like betting.. they've successfully shed most of those anchors before they sank the company..

I think you can say they stared down doom, and are coming out the other side as a pick who will continue to lead the next generation.

Even just SURVIVING that gauntlet (oh and a pandemic in there) without breaking up the company is a win.. and they're still lining up the guns for the next push.

 

[flynnibus]

That's when I stopped watching. Such amateurish analysis. And also... 53 minutes long?! Nobody's got time for that!!

These people I swear are just here to pump views... dropping links with no context or part of the discussion. And worse.. when it's knucklehead stuff

 

[flynnibus]

I'm waiting to see how Disney tries to squeeze all these brands they are lining up into these DTC products as the sole place to get them and then try to jack the prices like they do the theme parks.

While Disney is lining up great names.. I just can't see who would be happy to pay $30/m for ESPN... sure there will be die hards.. but you're gonna lose all your passer by stuff at these price points. And I feel like when the squeeze comes.. Disney is gonna end up looking like the super villain hoarding all these gems and extorting people to get their taste.

 

[ctrlaltdel]

I'm waiting to see how Disney tries to squeeze all these brands they are lining up into these DTC products as the sole place to get them and then try to jack the prices like they do the theme parks.

While Disney is lining up great names.. I just can't see who would be happy to pay $30/m for ESPN... sure there will be die hards.. but you're gonna lose all your passer by stuff at these price points. And I feel like when the squeeze comes.. Disney is gonna end up looking like the super villain hoarding all these gems and extorting people to get their taste.

It's all about bundling with them. Obviously their main target is the trio (D+/Hulu/ESPN) but they have had great success inter-company bundling. You see it with the Max/Hulu bundle, which has the lowest churn rate in the industry due to the avalanche of excellent adult-centered content from those two services.

 

[plutofan15]

Now we get to everyone’s favorite part of a quarter where people seriously try and tell us that one of the most watched, discussed, and traded companies in the world is not only lying about their financials, but also that nobody else has noticed and wants to do something about this other than the brilliant financial minds at WDWMagic.com.

The financial books are absolutely not being cooked as some here imply.

 

[flynnibus]

It's all about bundling with them. Obviously their main target is the trio (D+/Hulu/ESPN) but they have had great success inter-company bundling. You see it with the Max/Hulu bundle, which has the lowest churn rate in the industry due to the avalanche of excellent adult-centered content from those two services.

Yeah but bundling for a slight discount on products you consume constantly is different than paying a premium all the time for something you may consume sporatically.

It's the exact problem that haunted the cable bundle.. people find themselves paying more for a bundle they don't feel they need.

The rest of the world who don't watch wrestling don't want to be paying more for WWE being available, etc.

 

[Serpico Jones]

The new Oracle backed Paramount is spending an insane amount of money on new content. Another major tech backed player that Disney will have to compete with.

 

[DCBaker]

More ESPN news before the earnings call:

ESPN, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, and WWE, part of TKO Group Holdings, Inc., today announced a landmark rights agreement as ESPN platforms, including the new ESPN direct-to-consumer streaming service, will become the exclusive U.S. domestic home of all WWE Premium Live Events (PLEs), including the two-night cultural phenomenon WrestleMania, starting in 2026. This deal makes ESPN home to the highest-profile WWE events of the year.

The ESPN DTC service will stream all WWE PLEs annually, in their entirety, with select simulcasting on ESPN linear platforms. Marquee PLEs include WrestleMania and SummerSlam – both two-night events – and Royal Rumble, Survivor Series, Money in the Bank, among others. WWE will continue to produce all PLEs.

Jimmy Pitaro, Chairman, ESPN: “WWE has an immense, devoted and passionate fanbase that we’re excited to super-serve on our new ESPN DTC platform. This agreement, which features the most-significant WWE events of the year, bolsters our unprecedented content portfolio and helps drive our streaming future.”

Mark Shapiro, President and Chief Operating Officer, TKO: “We are proud to reinforce the “E” in ESPN at such an exciting juncture in its direct-to-consumer journey. WWE Premium Live Events are renowned for exactly the type of rich storytelling, incredible feats of athleticism and can’t-miss, cultural tentpole experiences that have become synonymous with ESPN. Through our UFC relationship, we have experienced firsthand how transformational an ESPN presence can be, and we know this will be an exceptional partnership at a time of great innovation for both companies.”

Nick Khan, President, WWE: “WWE’s agreement with ESPN is a pivotal moment for our millions of fans across the United States: the leader in sports entertainment partnering with the biggest brand in sports media. Bringing WWE’s flagship events to ESPN’s platform is tremendously exciting. We know the sky is the limit.”

ESPN platforms, including its DTC service, will have the opportunity to stream WWE’s pre-and post-event shows tied to all Premium Live Events.

ESPN Platforms to Become Exclusive U.S. Domestic Home of All WWE Premium Live Events

ESPN and WWE have reached a landmark agreement as ESPN platforms become the exclusive U.S. domestic home of all WWE Premium Live Events starting in 2026.

thewaltdisneycompany.com

Update - WWE Premium Live Events will debut on ESPN platforms beginning September 20, earlier than the previously announced "2026" time frame.

The first WWE PLE to kick off the ESPN partnership will be the first-ever Wrestlepalooza on Saturday, September 20, live from Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis — host city of the 2025 Royal Rumble®, which set the event’s all-time attendance record. Wrestlepalooza will stream live on the new ESPN direct-to-consumer streaming service, beginning at 7pm ET/4pm PT.

On September 20, ESPN becomes the exclusive U.S. domestic home of all WWE PLEs, with all PLEs available to ESPN DTC subscribers with the unlimited plan. Additional upcoming WWE PLEs this year include Crown Jewel® on Saturday, October 11, and Survivor Series® on Saturday, November 29.

Full details at the link below:

WWE® Premium Live Events to Debut on ESPN Platforms on September 20 | The Walt Disney Company

ESPN and WWE today announced that WWE Premium Live Events will debut on ESPN platforms with 'Wrestlepalooza' earlier than previously announced.

thewaltdisneycompany.com