Disney’s earnings report is impressive but the market is unimpressed

The Walt Disney Co.’s profit for the third-quarter beat analyst estimates but revenue failed to meet expectations due to unchanged revenue at its movie studio despite a surge in profit from “The Avengers.”

The company said Tuesday that net income rose 24 percent to $1.83 billion, or $1.01 per share. There were minor adjustments that had no impact on the per-share results. Analysts polled by FactSet expected earnings of 93 cents per share.

Revenue rose 4 percent to $11.09 billion, short of the $11.32 billion expected by analysts.

Disney’s movie studio was behind much of the revenue miss, although the Marvel superhero epic “The Avengers” helped boost profit in the segment. Studio revenue was almost unchanged from a year ago at $1.63 billion, which was less than the $1.77 billion analysts expected.

Studio profits jumped to $313 million from $49 million a year ago.

The company said upbeat ticket sales to movies like “The Avengers” and “Brave” were offset by fewer sales of DVD and Blu-ray discs. Prominent home video titles during the quarter included “John Carter” and “The Muppets,” films that were shepherded to the big screen by former studio chairman Rich Ross. In May, Disney hired former Warner Bros. president Alan Horn as studio chair to improve results.

Revenue from TV businesses such as ESPN and ABC rose 3 percent to $5.08 billion. Ad revenue at ESPN rose in the “mid-teen” percentages thanks to higher prices, sales volume and bigger audiences.

Parks and resorts revenue grew 9 percent to $3.44 billion. The segment benefited from a full quarter of operations of its newest cruise ship, the Disney Fantasy, and higher attendance at its parks in Anaheim, Calif. Last year, parks results were hurt by the earthquake and tsunami in Japan.

Consumer products revenue grew 8 percent to $742 million. The company’s interactive games division saw revenue fall 22 percent to $196 million as there were fewer significant titles compared to a year ago.

Disney’s stock fell 41 cents to $49.40 in after-hours trading.