Streaming Profits Now Offsetting Disney Cable Decline

Bob Iger returned to Walt Disney as CEO in 2022 with a bold promise of making streaming profitable.

Reuters reports the latest quarterly results have shown signs of a turnaround at the storied media company, suggesting that Iger may be getting the House of Mickey Mouse in order by focusing on its streaming business.

Disney on Thursday reported its second straight quarterly profit for the streaming business, riding on cost-cutting measures and a 4.4 million jump in subscribers after it started cracking down on password-sharing by users.

Its $253 million operating profit for the streaming business in the fourth quarter nearly offset the $307 million that its traditional television business shed in operating income.

The hope is that Disney's streaming business will start to do more "heavy lifting" as it improves and linear television declines, said Ben Barringer, technology analyst at Quilter Cheviot.

The company began cracking down on password-sharing in June, following in the footsteps of streaming giant Netflix betting it would lead to a jump in subscriber numbers and higher revenue.

"The right way to think about Disney is to add together the shrinking linear TV business and the rapidly growing direct-to-consumer business, because Disney is hedged," Needham & Co senior research analyst Laura Martin said.