The Walt Disney Company has published its Q4 results for the full year ended 28 September 2024, reporting a 6 per cent uplift in revenues to US$22.6 billion in what was a strong year for its streaming products and box office hits 'Inside Out 2' and 'Deadpool & Wolverine'.

Income before tax fell 6 per cent to US$0.9 billion in the fourth quarter of the year, while diluted earnings per share (EPS) increased 79 per cent to US$0.25. In the full year, revenues grew 3 per cent to US$91.361 billion and income before tax was up 59 per cent to US$7.569 billion.

The company's entertainment segment contributed US$10.829 billion to Q4 revenues, up 14% year-on-year, with full year revenues rising 1 per cent to US$41.186 billion. Operating income for the segment increased four-fold, soaring from US$236 million to US$1.067 billion, attributed to improved results in Disney's Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) products (including Disney+, ESPN+ and Hulu), plus Content Sales/ Licensing and Other - including the theatrical distribution of Inside Out 2 and Deadpool & Wolverine. Likewise, full year operating income soared from US$1.444 billion to US$3.923 billion across the segment.

For Q4, Entertainment DTC revenues lifted 15 per cent to US$5.783 billion and operating income hit $253 million (compared to a US$420 million loss the year prior). The growth was in part attributed to subscription revenue growth, with Disney+ subscribers up 2 per cent to 56 million quarter on quarter, and Hulu up 2 per cent to 52 million. Also highlighted was growth in advertising revenue due to higher impression as well as lower marketing costs at Disney+, offset by higher technology and distribution costs and increased programming and production costs.

Meanwhile, the gains in streaming were offset by a challenging quarter for Disney's linear products, which saw revenue fall 6 per cent to US$2.461 billion and operating income plunging 38 per cent to US$498 million in Q4. Here, Disney pointed to higher marketing costs associated with the number of season premieres, lower affiliate revenue due and declines in advertising revenue due to lower average viewership.

In the Sports segment, Q4 revenues remained flat at US$3.914 billion, while operating income in Q4 was down 5 per cent to US$929 million. That was despite a 3 per cent lift in paid subscribers to 25.6 million in Q4 for sports streaming product ESPN+.

Overall, the DTC streaming business across Entertainment and Sport saw revenues grow by 13 per cent in the fourth quarter to US$6.296 billion, with operating income hitting US$321 million, a flip from the US$387 million loss recorded the same time last year. For the full year, the DTC business recorded a 14 per cent uplift for revenues of US$24.938 billion and operating income of US$134 million - compared to a US$2.612 billion loss in the last full year.

Commenting on the results, The Walt Disney Company CEO Bob Iger said: "This was a pivotal and successful year for The Walt Disney Company, and thanks to the significant progress we've made, we have emerged from a period of considerable challenges and disruption well positioned for growth and optimistic about our future.

"Our solid performance in the fiscal fourth quarter reflected the success of our strategic efforts to improve quality, innovation, efficiency, and value creation. In Q4 we saw one of the best quarters in the history of our film studio, improved profitability in our streaming businesses, a record-breaking 60 Emmy Awards for the company, the continued power of live sports, and the unveiling of an impressive collection of new projects coming to our Experiences segment. As a result of our strategies and our focus on managing our businesses for both the near- and long-term, we are differentiating ourselves from traditional competitors, leveraging the deepest and broadest set of entertainment assets in the industry to drive attractive returns and further advance our goals."