Disney's Theme Parks and Cruise Line Boost Q2 Profits as Experiences Income Hits $2.5 Billion

14 days ago in "The Walt Disney Company"

Posted: Wednesday May 7, 2025 7:20am ET by WDWMAGIC Staff

The Walt Disney Company reported its second quarter earnings for fiscal 2025 today, highlighting strong gains in its Experiences segment, which includes the theme parks, Disney Cruise Line, and consumer products. The company’s total revenue for the quarter rose 7% to $23.6 billion, with segment operating income up 15% to $4.4 billion.

Experiences Segment

Disney’s Experiences business generated $2.5 billion in operating income during Q2, up $200 million from the same quarter last year.

  • Domestic Parks and Experiences operating income rose 13% to $1.8 billion.

Growth was driven by:

  • Higher theme park attendance.
  • Increased guest spending.
  • Expanded Disney Cruise Line capacity with the launch of the Disney Treasure.
  • Improved performance from Disney Vacation Club.

However, expenses also rose due to fleet expansion and pre-opening costs for upcoming ships. About $35 million in pre-opening expenses were booked this quarter, mostly tied to Disney Destiny and Disney Adventure, both expected to enter service later this year.

  • International Parks and Experiences saw a 23% decline in operating income. Performance at Shanghai Disney Resort and Hong Kong Disneyland was soft, in line with broader economic concerns in China.
  • Consumer Products posted a 14% increase in operating income, primarily due to higher licensing revenue.

Looking ahead, Disney says bookings for the second half of the fiscal year at Walt Disney World remain “solidly above prior year,” and the company still expects Experiences operating income to grow 6% to 8% for the full fiscal year.

"Our outstanding performance this quarter-with adjusted EPS up 20% from the prior year driven by our Entertainment and Experiences businesses-underscores our continued success building for growth and executing across our strategic priorities," said Robert A. Iger, Chief Executive Officer, The Walt Disney Company. "Following an excellent first half of the fiscal year, we have a lot more to look forward to, including our upcoming theatrical slate, the launch of ESPN's new DTC offering, and an unprecedented number of expansion projects underway in our Experiences segment. Overall, we remain optimistic about the direction of the company and our outlook for the remainder of the fiscal year."

Company-Wide Performance

  • Net income before taxes increased to $3.1 billion from $0.7 billion in Q2 last year.
  • Diluted earnings per share rose to $1.81, compared to a $0.01 loss a year ago.
  • Adjusted EPS climbed 20% to $1.45.

Segment Highlights

  • Entertainment: Operating income rose $0.5 billion to $1.3 billion.
  • Direct-to-Consumer: Operating income increased by $289 million to $336 million, as Disney+ and Hulu subscriptions reached 180.7 million combined, up 2.5 million from Q1.
  • Sports: Segment operating income fell by $91 million to $687 million, affected by higher programming costs and a write-off related to the Venu joint venture. ESPN domestic revenue was up 7%, while sports advertising revenue jumped 29%.
  • Linear Networks: Operating income grew 2% year-over-year.
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    MisterPenguin8 days ago

    https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/streaming-theme-parks-disney-earningsq2-2025-1236209494/ https://variety.com/2025/tv/news/disney-earnings-fiscal-q2-2025-streaming-profit-iger-outlook-1236388735/

    Kamikaze10 days ago

    Fair point.

    Sirwalterraleigh10 days ago

    What makes you think I look at things that far ahead? 🤪

    Kamikaze10 days ago

    But you DID intend to say something without having to commit to actually saying it.

    Sirwalterraleigh10 days ago

    I didn’t really intend for this to get into quantum physics ⚛️ Just saying it’s a troll that shows up and argues against common sense 100% of the time

    Kamikaze10 days ago

    No… even if we are just ignoring proper notation for sub/superscript numbers because how the heck would you do that on these forums, it reads X to the -1, not ‘correct’ to -1. A proper reading would be variable ‘correct’ and variable ‘X’, which would be, if we are assuming, to the -1. So, as I said, it’s not solvable. Best way to write it would be ‘correct-1’ without the X. Or the format how it’s usually done on forums/text ‘correct^-1’ Or he could just say ‘that’s incorrect’, but hey, gotta be vague.

    Sirwalterraleigh10 days ago

    …new math…it’s gonna be YUGE soon 🤓

    doctornick10 days ago

    So, in seeing some of the "backlash" about the Abu Dhabi announcement - which is really very minimal and not mainstream in my impression - got me thinking about that announcement and how it sits with "ordinary" investors. And I actually think that perhaps that the willingness of the company to make a more morally ambiguous business decision is viewed as a positive and really helped the jump in stock price beyond just the financial value of the deal. Specifically, I get the sense that some investors were scared off or down on Disney for being more overtly political in the post-pandemic era and felt that might be "bad for business" but increasingly I think it is clear that Disney is being more neutral going forward - but I think a deal for a park in UAE is basically the loudest and most clear statement (without specifically stating it) that Disney is focused on business as usual as opposed to any activism. Individuals can agree or disagree with that approach but from a financial point of view, I suspect that the market prefers to see companies not veering into taking political positions and this will potentially help the stock price more going forward.

    Nubs7010 days ago

    You absolutely can. It reads CORRECT to the minus 1 power. Or the inverse of correct Or Incorrect

    MR.Dis10 days ago

    Just read that the new Snow White movie is heading to Disney +, that is really going to spike the streaming numbers-LOL.

    doctornick10 days ago

    Right, YouTubeTV is equivalent to Hulu with Live TV which actually does very well for Disney in terms of profit. And interestingly, Disney is going to buff up that offering with their takeover of Fubo which is going to merge with Hulu with Live TV. Sling is the other big option in that market.

    SamusAranX10 days ago

    Would you look at those prices. And my parents had the gall to say we couldn’t afford cable!

    Kamikaze10 days ago

    One thing here - YouTube TV is not a streaming service like Disney+, Netflix, Max, AppleTV+; its an OTT cable provider.

    Kamikaze10 days ago

    There's no way you can properly solve that equation.

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