Promising but cautious outlook
The Walt Disney Co. (DIS) is set to report its fiscal first-quarter earnings for 2023 (Q1 2023) on Wednesday, February 8, after US markets close. With Bob Iger back as CEO, investors are more optimistic about the results.
For company earnings and revenue, Subscription numbers for Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+ will be in focus. At the same time, the group's parks and recreation services also had a phenomenal return to growth in 2022. Investors hope higher ticket prices will support the company's revenue and earnings.
Refinitiv, based on 30 analysts poll, for the Q1 2023 results expecting a Revenue of $23.359 (+7% year on year) and Earnings per share of $0.79 (-25% year on year). Analysts in Visible Alpha expect earnings per share of $0.77 on average, down from $1.06 in the same quarter last year. Moreover, according to Zackas, this entertainment company is expected to show quarterly earnings of $0.69 per share, which will be -34.9%. Revenue is also expected to be $23.33 billion, up 6.9% from the same quarter year ago.
One of the most bright and most promising points of Walt Disney's activities is its streaming service. Just in Q4 last year, Disney+ reported an increase of subscribers worldwide by +8%, to 164.2 million, combined with Hulu and ESPN+, increased the total number of subscribers to 235.7 million and got Netflix's place as the most prominent streaming company. Walt Disney and its partners will be able to advance in this industry and maintain their leadership position during this quarter. On top of that, Disney parks, experiences, and products segment has benefited much from the global economy reopening, and it can also help the overall company revenue. Therefore, there are several reasons to be optimistic about Wednesday's earnings report.
From the technical point of view, the EMA crossing strategy says above $93.50; we have more room for growth with $109 as a key pivot. A positive report can send the share price toward $126 and then $135 while missing the estimates with overall negative sentiment across the market can encourage the bears.
