Disney’s Theme Park Division Announces $2.4 Billion Loss During Q4 Earnings Report
If you’ve been following along with MickeyBlog then you know that Disney made its 4th Quarter Earnings Report earlier today and it provided some very interesting insights into how the theme parks are faring during these unprecedented times.
During the call, it was revealed, rather unsurprisingly that Disney’s theme park division had a $2.4 billion loss as a result of capped attendance at the theme parks, cruise ships that are docked and the lengthy closure at Disneyland Resort.
However, as we previous reported, Bob Chapek did say during the call that 77% of theme park reservations are booked going into the new year. This includes an almost completely booked Thanksgiving period. In addition, Chapek acknowledged that Disney World was able to raise the occupancy rate from 25% – 35% while saying that it is still possible to maintain social distancing with the slightly higher number of guests allowed inside.
According to a piece in the Orlando Sentinel Chapek shared his optimism for how the theme park reopening is going. He said, “We’re very pleased by how we have become adept at operating under these constraints.”
Disney’s chief financial officer Christine McCarthy said that Disney World as well as Shanghai Disneyland and Hong Kong Disney made enough revenue over the past quarter to cover costs. However, the company has concerns as the number of COVID-19 cases continue to surge worldwide.
Then there’s Disney Cruise Line which has just cancelled all sailings into the new year. Though cruising delays are likely to continue indefinitely as a result of what Chapek called “really high hurdles” set by the CDC it doesn’t seem to be stifling Disney’s future plans. During the earnings call, the company announced that their newest ship Disney Wish will launch in the Summer of 2022 with two others in 2024 and 2025.
If there was a bright spot to be had during the earnings call it was definitely, as the Sentinel points out the fact that the Disney+ streaming service can now boast over 73 million subscribers as it celebrates its 1st Anniversary. The company is making Disney+ a focal point going forward and as we previously reported here at MickeyBlog, the company has gone through an administrative reshuffle to prioritize the further development of DIsney+
Other key takeaways from the Q4 report is that Disney’s revenue is down by 23% to $14.7 billion. The company also advised that it will not be paying out stock dividend for the second half of 2020 because of the impact of the pandemic. However, at no point during the call did Chapek discuss the 28,000 that have happened across the theme parks.
This is a story that we’ll continue to follow closely. Readers are encouraged to keep following along with MickeyBlog for further Walt Disney World news and updates!
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Source: Orlando Sentinel