By Yasin Ebrahim
Investing.com -- Disney (NYSE:DIS) on Wednesday reported better-than-expected fiscal first-quarter results led by strong performance in its theme parks business, sending the stock up 3.4% in afterhours trading.
Walt Disney Company announced earnings per share of $0.99 on revenue of $23.51 billion. Analysts polled by Investing.com anticipated EPS of $0.79 on revenue of $23.43B.
The firm's Disney Parks, Experiences and Products business reported a 21% jump in revenue to $8.74B, supported by growth at Disneyland Paris and higher royalties from Tokyo Disney Resort, Disney said, though this was partially offset by a decrease at Shanghai Disney Resort.
The direct-to-consumer business saw revenues for the quarter increase 13% to $5.3B, though operating losses widened to $0.5B to $1.1B, driven by a "higher loss at Disney+ and a decrease in results at Hulu, partially offset by improved results at ESPN+," the company said.
Disney+ added 161.8 million subscribers in the fiscal first quarter, down from 164.2M in the prior quarter.
The average monthly revenue per paid subscriber for domestic Disney+ decreased from $6.10 to $5.95, pressured by a "higher mix of subscribers to multi-product offerings, partially offset by an increase in retail pricing," Disney added.