Disney Earnings Call for 4th quarter

[rteetz]

Here is what to expect from tomorrow's earnings report.

http://www.wsj.com/articles/walt-disney-earnings-what-to-watch-1446605432

Should be a interesting call tomorrow.

 

[rteetz]

Earnings call goes live at 4:15 EST.

 

[DDLand]

https://cdn.thewaltdisneycompany.com/sites/default/files/reports/q4-fy15-earnings.pdf

I thought I'd drop this here. Pretty big quarter for Disney.

http://www.latimes.com/entertainmen...r-earnings-star-wars-espn-20151105-story.html

Slight revenue miss, but still nonetheless a strong quarter. It seems like their foreign operations are getting slammed. Hong Kong Disneyland in particular is being hit hard.

 

[OKW Lover]

Here's a quote from the Theme Park segment:
---------------------------------------------------
Parks and Resorts
Parks and Resorts revenues for the quarter increased 10% to $4.4 billion, and segment operating income increased 7% to $738 million. Operating income growth for the quarter was due to an increase at our domestic operations, partially offset by a decrease at our international operations.

Growth at our domestic operations was driven by increased guest spending and attendance at our theme parks, partially offset by higher costs. Guest spending growth was primarily due to higher average hotel room rates and ticket prices for sailings at our cruise line as well as theme park admissions and increased merchandise, food and beverage spending. Cost increases were driven by labor and other cost inflation, spending on information technology maintenance and infrastructure and higher pension and
postretirement medical costs.

The decrease at our international operations was primarily due to lower attendance and occupied room nights at Hong Kong Disneyland Resort, higher operating costs at Disneyland Paris and higher pre-opening expenses at Shanghai Disney Resort. These decreases were partially offset by increased guest spending and volumes at Disneyland Paris. Guest spending growth at Disneyland Paris was due to increased food, beverage and merchandise spending as well as higher average hotel room rates and ticket prices. Increased volumes at Disneyland Paris were due to higher attendance and occupied room nights.

 

[rteetz]

The decrease at our international operations was primarily due to lower attendance and occupied room nights at Hong Kong Disneyland Resort, higher operating costs at Disneyland Paris and higher pre-opening expenses at Shanghai Disney Resort. These decreases were partially offset by increased guest spending and volumes at Disneyland Paris. Guest spending growth at Disneyland Paris was due to increased food, beverage and merchandise spending as well as higher average hotel room rates and ticket prices. Increased volumes at Disneyland Paris were due to higher attendance and occupied room nights.

I wonder if people are starting to worry about the affects of Shanghai on Hong Kong. I wouldn't be surprised if we see some sort of expansion announcement at HKDL sooner than later.

I'm also interested to see how the numbers at DLP continue as they continue their major investments for both of those parks.

 

[OKW Lover]

I'm also interested to see how the numbers at DLP continue as they continue their major investments for both of those parks.

We were just at DLP two weeks ago for our first visit ever. I was very impressed with their MK. Their Studio still needs work but then again so does ours (DHS). They have a really, really great ride at the Walt Disney Studio park called Ratatouille: The Adventure. It uses a new ride mechanism in which individual cars move independently through the attraction, all controlled by what must be quite the computer system.

 

[rteetz]

We were just at DLP two weeks ago for our first visit ever. I was very impressed with their MK. Their Studio still needs work but then again so does ours (DHS). They have a really, really great ride at the Walt Disney Studio park called Ratatouille: The Adventure. It uses a new ride mechanism in which individual cars move independently through the attraction, all controlled by what must be quite the computer system.

Yes ratatouille uses a trackless ride system just like the pooh ride in Tokyo. DLP is now 70% owned by the Walt Disney company and they are investing a lot into those parks after years of neglect by Euro Disney.

 

[nkosiek]

Everything offset by higher prices. Shocking.

 

[Josh Hendy]

We were just at DLP two weeks ago for our first visit ever. I was very impressed with their MK. Their Studio still needs work but then again so does ours (DHS). They have a really, really great ride at the Walt Disney Studio park called Ratatouille: The Adventure. It uses a new ride mechanism in which individual cars move independently through the attraction, all controlled by what must be quite the computer system.

It bugs me that there are no plans to either import the Ratatouille ride to WDW or better yet, make a new, original ride using the technology. Frozen, for example could have been done that way. A re-do of Energy Adventure. The possibilities are endless ... so just do it.

I'm grateful for whatever they are adding to the parks (whenever they're adding it) but let's face it, there has been very little really new (let alone original) technology added to WDW for a long time. I think that ride innovation pretty much ceased at WDW after Mission Space, Test Track and Sum of All Thrills. Rocking mine cars notwithstanding.

 

[rteetz]

It bugs me that there are no plans to either import the Ratatouille ride to WDW or better yet, make a new, original ride using the technology. Frozen, for example could have been done that way. A re-do of Energy Adventure. The possibilities are endless ... so just do it.

I'm grateful for whatever they are adding to the parks (whenever they're adding it) but let's face it, there has been very little really new (let alone original) technology added to WDW for a long time. I think that ride innovation pretty much ceased at WDW after Mission Space, Test Track and Sum of All Thrills. Rocking mine cars notwithstanding.

The technology has been around for nearly 20 years in Tokyo and hasn't been used very much. The US parks don't have a trackless ride using that technology.

 

[Flyerjab]

It bugs me that there are no plans to either import the Ratatouille ride to WDW or better yet, make a new, original ride using the technology. Frozen, for example could have been done that way. A re-do of Energy Adventure. The possibilities are endless ... so just do it.

I'm grateful for whatever they are adding to the parks (whenever they're adding it) but let's face it, there has been very little really new (let alone original) technology added to WDW for a long time. I think that ride innovation pretty much ceased at WDW after Mission Space, Test Track and Sum of All Thrills. Rocking mine cars notwithstanding.

I saw this in a MiceChat segment on their website regarding the Star Wars Land and a trackless ride:

But what we can tell you is that Star Wars Land will include multiple attractions, anchored by a mega E Ticket using a trackless vehicle that will break the mold when it comes to how theme park visitors interact with a ride environment.

 

[rteetz]

I saw this in a MiceChat segment on their website regarding the Star Wars Land and a trackless ride:

But what we can tell you is that Star Wars Land will include multiple attractions, anchored by a mega E Ticket using a trackless vehicle that will break the mold when it comes to how theme park visitors interact with a ride environment.

So far they are the only ones I've seen report that. I'm not doubting that but the fact that Disney has had 20 years to bring the technology to the US is something. I really do hope we see it with Star Wars.

 

[Flyerjab]

So far they are the only ones I've seen report that. I'm not doubting that but the fact that Disney has had 20 years to bring the technology to the US is something. I really do hope we see it with Star Wars.

I agree on both points. My hope is that this unnecessary wait will pay off. I have been trying to think of how this would work and when you consider the concept of trackless, I sometimes wonder if this will harken back to the Horizons ride (and to clarify I have never had the pleasure of experiencing that ride first hand unfortunately). If I am not mistaken, there were three paths that you could take and it was determined by how people vote in the omnimover. If this rumor of a trackless Star Wars ride is true, maybe it will offer multiple paths that the ride vehicles can take. That would be amazing. I think that doing something like adding multiple pathways through a dark ride would be a great experience. It really helps the re-ridability factor knowing that you can have different experiences when you ride. I just really hope that this rumor turns out to be true.

 

[OKW Lover]

I sometimes wonder if this will harken back to the Horizons ride (and to clarify I have never had the pleasure of experiencing that ride first hand unfortunately). If I am not mistaken, there were three paths that you could take and it was determined by how people vote in the omnimover.

The old Horizons attractions is sorely missed. The voting didn't result in your car going on a different path though. It just governed which movie you saw during the final portion of the ride. The vehicles had "blinders" that prevented you from being distracted/confused by the films being shown to riders in the adjacent ride vehicles.