Disney, 'Reopening + Metaverse' Full of Opportunities... "Stock Worth High Attention"

[Asia Economy Reporter Jihwan Park] Hana Financial Investment evaluated Disney's recent earnings report as encompassing all the positive factors such as over-the-top (OTT) video services, reopening (economic recovery), and the metaverse on the 13th. They also stated that the stock price is at a level worthy of high interest.

Lee Ki-hoon, a researcher at Hana Financial Investment, said, "It is a positive earnings announcement and a stock price level that deserves high attention," adding, "In particular, the Park segment's performance showed a recovery close to pre-COVID levels." He also maintained a very optimistic view on Disney+'s 2024 paid subscriber guidance of 230 million to 260 million.

Researcher Lee said, "The very slow content supply speed compared to Netflix is planned to accelerate as the investment amount is raised to $33 billion," adding, "Investment in the metaverse, a core part of future growth strategy, is also underway." He evaluated that the stock price is also at a level worthy of high interest.

Last year's Q4 earnings showed revenue of $21.8 billion, an increase of 34.3% year-on-year. Operating profit was $3.26 billion, up 144.6%. In particular, the Park segment's revenue recovered to a level close to pre-pandemic despite the absence of overseas visitors who accounted for 18-20% of visitors to U.S. theme parks, turning profitable.

Due to increased costs such as production expenses, the DTC segment's deficit slightly widened. Despite the release of Spider-Man: No Way Home, the content sales segment turned to a loss due to poor box office performance.

Disney plans to more than double the number of countries Disney+ is available in by 2023, and especially invest $33 billion (approximately 39 trillion KRW) in 2022 content alone to secure over 50 local content and original lineups in the Asia-Pacific region. This is an increase of $8 billion compared to the previous year.

Researcher Lee said, "Disney+'s Korean drama lineup currently consists of about six titles including Casino starring Choi Min-sik, but it is expected to increase rapidly," adding, "The possibility of expanding simultaneous broadcast sales is also high." He added, "Compared to Netflix's Korean investment amount this year (about 1 trillion KRW) and original production count (more than 25 titles), there is still considerable room for investment expansion."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.