by widgette.com
Disney disappointed Wall Street with a 14% drop in profits. Though they did still turn a profit, it was not as large as had been predicted. The company was hit hard by the collapse of Lehman brothers and had to write-off $91 million in bad debt.
BURBANK, Calif. – The Walt Disney Company today reported earnings for its first fiscal quarter ended December 27, 2008. Diluted earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter were $0.45, compared to $0.63 in the prior-year quarter. EPS for the current quarter included a gain on the sale of our investment in two pay television
services in Latin America, which resulted in a benefit of $0.04 per share.
“We faced a challenging first quarter with many of our businesses impacted to various degrees by the economic downturn,” said Robert A. Iger, Disney’s president and CEO. “We are forcefully confronting current circumstance while investing in the great creativity, brands and assets that are Disney’s strengths and keys to its long-term success.”