Writers strike hurt, but Disney's 2Q profit still climbs

The strike also raised prices in the spot ad market as the lull in network shows shrunk available ad time. That bodes well for the upfront sales presentation to advertising agencies set for Tuesday in New York, which will affect pricing for the coming fall TV season, Disney Chief Executive Robert Iger said.

"The fact that ratings are returning to ABC since the work stoppage, we think we're in good shape revenue-wise for the rest of the year," he told analysts on a conference call.

The company said Monday it earned $1.13 billion, or 58 cents per share, in the quarter ended March 29, compared with $931 million, or 44 cents per share, a year earlier. Revenue grew 10 percent to $8.71 billion.

Analysts expected earnings of 51 cents per share on $8.47 billion in revenue, according to Thomson Financial.

Disney shares jumped 96 cents, or 2.9 percent, to $34.69 in after-hours trading. The shares gained 44 cents to end the regular trading session at $33.73 before the earnings were announced.

Disney said international sales of shows such as "Grey's Anatomy" helped revenue from Disney's media networks grow 5 percent to $3.61 billion, despite the 100-day writers strike that ended in February.

The company also said a weak U.S. dollar helped keep American vacationers closer to home and attracted tourists from abroad, increasing theme park attendance and spending.

Parks and resorts revenue grew 11 percent to $2.73 billion, and hotel bookings through 2008 were trending higher than last year, the company said.

A cheaper mix of hotel room offerings and bargains for extended stays also kept tourists coming, Iger said. Domestic park attendance was up 5 percent, while parks in Paris and Hong Kong saw double-digit increases.

"While we don't know where the marketplace will take us, we believe we're much better positioned in a difficult economic cycle than we were in the past, certainly back in 1991," Iger said.

Richard Greenfield, an analyst with Pali Research, said parks revenues were expected to be hurt for the rest of the year but said "they continue to hold up better than expected."

The results for parks at home and abroad also benefited from an Easter holiday that fell in the second quarter, the company said.

Disney reported studio revenue increased 18 percent to $1.82 billion, with box office sales boosted by "National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets" and the 3-D hit "Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds."

The company said its recent move to take back operation of 220 Disney Store outlets in North America from The Children's Place Retail Stores Inc. would modestly reduce profits in its consumer products division for the rest of the year.

Consumer products sales in the most recent quarter increased 10 percent to $551 million, while operating profits for that segment dropped 14 percent to $107 million.

Having control of the retail stores would help Disney sell products based on franchises from Hannah Montana to Pirates of the Caribbean, Iger said.

He said the company expected to reduce the number of stores to be closed from the 100 already announced.

"It will give us the ability to be more focused in general and basically take advantage of better locations in the marketplace," he said.

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