Disney has released its first earnings report under new CEO Josh D’Amaro, and the company delivered stronger results than expected. For the three months ending March 28, Disney generated $25.17 billion in revenue, up 7% compared to last year. Adjusted earnings per share rose 8% to $1.57, beating Wall Street expectations.
Although Disney’s net income dropped 31% to $2.25 billion, the company said the decline was mainly caused by higher taxes. One of the biggest highlights came from Disney’s streaming business. Revenue from Disney+ and Hulu grew 13% to $5.49 billion, while operating income jumped 88% to $582 million. Disney said the increase was helped by subscription price hikes introduced in late 2025.
The streaming division also achieved an operating margin above 10% for the first time, which Disney says keeps it on track for strong growth throughout fiscal 2026.
Josh D’Amaro officially became Disney CEO on March 18 after Bob Iger stepped down. D’Amaro, who previously led Disney’s parks division, said the company remains focused on long-term growth and building on the strategies introduced during Iger’s leadership. Disney also recently laid off around 1,000 employees as part of efforts to make its marketing operations more efficient.
Looking ahead, Disney expects operating income to grow another 16% in the next quarter and predicts adjusted earnings growth of around 12% for the full fiscal year. The company also plans to buy back at least $8 billion worth of shares before the end of fiscal 2026.
Disney highlighted several successful and upcoming movie releases, including The Devil Wears Prada 2, The Mandalorian & Grogu, Toy Story 5, and the live-action Moana film. The company also pointed to the success of Zootopia 2 on Disney+, saying the franchise has now passed 1 billion streaming hours across both movies. Disney noted that the franchise continues to generate revenue through theme parks, cruises, games, and merchandise.
Other popular streaming titles during the quarter included Predator: Badlands, Paradise Season 2, and Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette. Upcoming releases include Avatar: Fire and Ash, Pixar’s Hoppers, and the final season of The Bear. Disney’s sports division, led by ESPN, saw revenue rise 6% to $4.61 billion, though operating profit fell slightly because of higher programming costs and fewer NBA games.
Meanwhile, Disney’s Experiences division, which includes theme parks, cruises, and merchandise, reported record quarterly revenue of $9.5 billion. While attendance at U.S. parks dipped slightly due to weaker international tourism, Disney said demand remains strong overall. The company also spoke about gaming and artificial intelligence. Disney said its partnership with Epic Games continues to perform well, with The Simpsons experience inside Fortnite attracting more than 80 million players.
Disney also confirmed it will no longer move forward with its planned $1 billion investment in OpenAI’s Sora project after the platform was shut down. However, the company said it still sees AI as an important long-term opportunity, especially in content creation, productivity, and customer experiences, while keeping human creativity at the center of its work.
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