Earning Report: Attendance remains level with last year, revenue down

[wdwmagic]

- Attendance level with last year
- Revenue down 7% due to less guests spending and Disney discounts

Full summary at http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/orl-bk-disney-earnings-073009,0,2353698.story

 

[TubaGeek]

Well, I'm surpised they haven't lost more revenue!
Great job WDW!

 

[EPCOTPluto]

- Attendance level with last year
- Revenue down 7% due to less guests spending and Disney discounts

Full summary at http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/orl-bk-disney-earnings-073009,0,2353698.story

Interesting. What are the chances the YOaMD was a factor as well in this? :shrug:

 

[EPCOT Explorer]

Ah....Interesting. So is "Level" a bad thing for WDW?:lookaroun

 

[aladdin2007]

and what does this mean for the fantasyland expansion or anything else new? the news on tv made it sound so grim about the down level.:shrug:

 

[magic2me]

That is great news in this economy. They have been doing deep discounts and only being down 7% of revenue is great. I am sure the profit is down more, due to the discounts, but keeping the people coming and being able to pay the light bill is a good thing.

 

[Captain Chaos]

Ah....Interesting. So is "Level" a bad thing for WDW?:lookaroun

I would say level, in this economy, is awesome... Especially since other theme parks and amusement parks are saying their attendance is dismal...

 

[Duckberg]

POSITIVE News

A lot of people are doing something RIGHT @ WDW :sohappy: Duckberg

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

Yes its called discounts.

 

[PhotoDave219]

Its all on what you compare it to. You cant always have record year after record year.

One cannot expect operating revenue of P&R to be $3 BILLION dollars every quarter.

 

[zulemara]

I would say level, in this economy, is awesome... Especially since other theme parks and amusement parks are saying their attendance is dismal...

Universal posts a double digit decline in attendance yet an increase in profits.

Universal has citywalk
WDW has atlantic dance
I rest my case

 

[One Lil Spark]

So will they have to do more delays/cutbacks to make up for the 7%, or were the earlier layoffs and such done because this was expected?

 

[Fade_to_Blah]

I dont think its ever considered a good thing to stay level with last years attendance or revenue. Sure giving the circumstances with the economy its somewhat understood...but im sure not gonna give disney a "WELL DONE!!!!" like some are

 

[The Conundrum]

Ah....Interesting. So is "Level" a bad thing for WDW?:lookaroun

its both Good that they didn't loose more money but bad that there was no growth. Kinda like the equivalent of getting a C in college.
However keep in mind thats only concerning attendance. Revenues did go down (which is bad)

 

[WDW1974]

Point blank, this is the problem with what has morphed into what we call 'capitalism' in the USA today.

Disney made a tremendous profit. Hell, attendance at WDW didn't DROP AT ALL from last year's third quarter despite being in a depression that the talking heads (all making big money) only call a recession.

Yet, Disney still cries poverty. They cut thousands of jobs. They cut entertainment. They cut operating hours. They cut quality. Oh, and all the while they were discounting like hell, they were also raising prices across the board on everything from Dole Whips to a night at the Poly.

Still, what should be looked at in glowing terms will be used as an excuse to lower quality further in all likelihood.

It gets old.

Sorry, but the era where every quarter is expected to show growth -- let alone the old 20% model -- just isn't realistic. And to keep damaging the brand and demeaning the legacy to make Wall Street happy is pure folly. And since the past few years have proven that Wall Street is a giant fraud perpetrated on the citizens of this great country, it would be nice to have some company CEO stand up and say poin blank 'we're gonna do things the right way ... not so the stock goes up a dime or only drops a quarter today'.

And to see DL gain 10% in these times is really incredible in a great way.

Disney and other American companies need to stop worrying so much about what the Street thinks and just run the business in a smart way for the long term.

They won't ... but they should.

 

[MichWolv]

The press report has a few specific comments about theme parks.

Disney's theme parks were among the hardest-hit segments of the Burbank, Calif.-based company's media-and-entertainment empire.

Operating profit in the company's Parks and Resorts unit sank 19 percent to $521 million on total revenue that was down 9 percent to $2.8 billion -- even with the benefit of the Easter holiday week shifting from March 2008 to April 2009. Disney blamed the slump in part on lower spending at Walt Disney World, where widespread discounts eroded average hotel rates and average ticket prices. Sponsorship income also fell at Disney World.

Disney also cited softness at Disney Vacation Club, its Celebration-based time-share arm, and Disneyland Paris.

On a conference call to discuss the results, Disney executives said attendance at Walt Disney World remained flat with last year's levels, while attendance at Disneyland in Anaheim, Calif., rose 10 percent. The comparisons with a year ago were boosted by the shift of the Easter holiday from March 2008 to April 2009. But guest spending at the two U.S. resorts fell 6 percent for the period.

So, a 9 percent drop in revenue 19 percent drop in operating profit. Certainly consistent with a discounting strategy.

 

[Computer Magic]

Point blank, this is the problem with what has morphed into what we call 'capitalism' in the USA today.

Disney made a tremendous profit. Hell, attendance at WDW didn't DROP AT ALL from last year's third quarter despite being in a depression that the talking heads (all making big money) only call a recession.

Yet, Disney still cries poverty. They cut thousands of jobs. They cut entertainment. They cut operating hours. They cut quality. Oh, and all the while they were discounting like hell, they were also raising prices across the board on everything from Dole Whips to a night at the Poly.

Still, what should be looked at in glowing terms will be used as an excuse to lower quality further in all likelihood.

It gets old.

Sorry, but the era where every quarter is expected to show growth -- let alone the old 20% model -- just isn't realistic. And to keep damaging the brand and demeaning the legacy to make Wall Street happy is pure folly. And since the past few years have proven that Wall Street is a giant fraud perpetrated on the citizens of this great country, it would be nice to have some company CEO stand up and say poin blank 'we're gonna do things the right way ... not so the stock goes up a dime or only drops a quarter today'.

And to see DL gain 10% in these times is really incredible in a great way.

Disney and other American companies need to stop worrying so much about what the Street thinks and just run the business in a smart way for the long term.

They won't ... but they should.

There are CEO that do the things the right way..look at Costco, Apple, etc as a prime example. Seems Disney should now be looking at what others do...what a change from the days of people saying do what Disney is doing...

 

[WDW1974]

There are CEO that do the things the right way..look at Costco, Apple, etc as a prime example. Seems Disney should now be looking at what others do...what a change from the days of people saying do what Disney is doing...

Exactly.

I'm not saying things are rosey at all (I was saying we were in a depression before leaving for China last summer), but frankly as a stockholder I am thrilled with those results.

I was predicting a 5-8% drop in attendance at WDW myself. Yet, there was none (of course, explain that to all the people experiencing DAK's nightly 6 p.m. closings, or Studios closing three nights a week at 7 p.m. and being down to three performances of Fantasmic a week from 14 last year at the same time).

I am so tired of seeing companies live to make Wall Street and institutional investors happy, while degrading their brands, sometimes to a point where they are never the same.

Again, this is a company that isn't losing money. They are making hundreds of millions in profit. Yet that somehow is bad in the bizarro America of the 21st century!

And just think how the numbers might have looked if the Studios actually had a hit during the spring!

 

[tecowdw]

That is great news in this economy. They have been doing deep discounts and only being down 7% of revenue is great. I am sure the profit is down more, due to the discounts, but keeping the people coming and being able to pay the light bill is a good thing.

Ya, in my neck of the woods in Northern Indiana, revenue down 35-50% is the story for the RV industry.

And profit? The local industries haven't seen profit for about 9 months now.

 

[Computer Magic]

Exactly.

I'm not saying things are rosey at all (I was saying we were in a depression before leaving for China last summer), but frankly as a stockholder I am thrilled with those results.

I was predicting a 5-8% drop in attendance at WDW myself. Yet, there was none (of course, explain that to all the people experiencing DAK's nightly 6 p.m. closings, or Studios closing three nights a week at 7 p.m. and being down to three performances of Fantasmic a week from 14 last year at the same time).

I am so tired of seeing companies live to make Wall Street and institutional investors happy, while degrading their brands, sometimes to a point where they are never the same.

Again, this is a company that isn't losing money. They are making hundreds of millions in profit. Yet that somehow is bad in the bizarro America of the 21st century!

And just think how the numbers might have looked if the Studios actually had a hit during the spring!

exactly, as a shareholder I look long term not qtr to qtr...