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Credit: DisneyThe Walt Disney Company did not necessarily breed the results that many shareholders wanted to see in its latest quarterly earnings report.
According to the new filing by Disney, the Disney Parks division of the company posted $7.4 billion in the fourth quarter of 2022 and a whopping $28.7 billion in total revenue for the fiscal year 2022, which ended on October 1, 2022, but it wasn’t all good news.
Disney reported an operating loss for its streaming segment of $1.47 billion for the quarter, which was about $800 million more than the year-earlier period. The company attributed the increase to higher losses at Disney+ and ESPN+ and lower results at Hulu.
As a result of some of the losses and a shaky stock price, Disney CEO Bob Chapek announced a “targeted hiring freeze” and that layoffs would soon be coming. These layoffs are coming despite price hikes, including changes in prices for tickets to Walt Disney World Resort and Disneyland Resort, as well as increases in services like Disney Genie+ and Lightning Lane.
Screamscape recently reported that another memo from Bob Chapek shared that Disney will be cutting “non-essential work travel.”
“According to a memo from CEO, Bob Chapek, company wide cost-cutting measures would be going into effect, and that layoffs would be affecting segments of the company in the near future. The company has also put a freeze on almost all job hiring, as well as a ban on “non-essential work travel.”
It should be noted that Disney is in no danger of faltering because the company is posting such strong numbers in the Disney Parks division, but failing to reach its expected profit margin shows that there are concerns for The Walt Disney Company heading into the next quarter.
Disney recently announced more price increases, including prices for a one-day ticket at each Disney Park in Walt Disney World Resort, as well as prices for Disney Annual Passes, which have been frozen since the fall of last year.
With layoffs on the horizon, there are many insiders who believe we’ll see more cuts in the future, even affecting the Disney Parks. At this time, however, nothing has been confirmed by Disney.
What do you think of these decisions from Bob Chapek? Let us know in the comments.