Disney Q3 2026 earnings beat estimates as parks and streaming grow
Disney beat adjusted earnings forecasts, though revenue fell just short as parks and streaming delivered the strongest growth.
By Dev Ramirez · Crypto Correspondent
· 3 min read
Disney Q3 2026 earnings topped Wall Street’s profit forecast, while revenue landed slightly below expectations. For investors, the report showed continued growth in the company’s parks and streaming operations, but also left less detail available on streaming subscribers and traditional television than in prior quarters.
For the fiscal third quarter ended June 27, Disney reported adjusted earnings per share of $2.06, compared with the $1.86 consensus estimate compiled by LSEG, according to CNBC. That was a $0.20-per-share beat. Revenue rose 7% from a year earlier to $25.25 billion, but was $150 million below the $25.4 billion estimate.
Disney shares rose roughly 4% in premarket trading following the release, CNBC reported.
What drove Disney Q3 2026 earnings?
The Experiences division, which includes Disney’s global theme parks and cruises, reported revenue of $9.97 billion, up 10% from a year earlier. Chief Financial Officer Hugh Johnston told CNBC that attendance at U.S. parks increased 3% and spending per guest rose 4%. He described attendance at Walt Disney World in Orlando as very strong.
Those figures contrast with the conditions reported by NBCUniversal in the preceding quarter, when it cited lower attendance at its Orlando parks amid weaker consumer sentiment and higher travel costs, according to CNBC.
Entertainment streaming revenue, mainly from Disney+ and Hulu, climbed 11% to $5.53 billion. Disney attributed the increase to a larger customer base, higher prices and more advertising revenue, CNBC reported.
That streaming figure is only part of Disney’s broader Entertainment business. The full segment, which also includes traditional television and theatrical releases, generated $11.35 billion in revenue, up 6% from the prior year. Disney no longer provides quarterly streaming-subscriber counts, and it has also stopped reporting a quarterly revenue and operating-income breakdown for its linear television networks. That limits the detail investors can use to separate streaming momentum from pressure in the older TV business.
Sports revenue, largely from ESPN, increased 4% to $4.5 billion during the quarter, CNBC said.
Why did Disney’s net income fall?
Reported net income was $2.64 billion, or $1.51 a share, down from $5.26 billion, or $2.92 a share, in the year-earlier quarter. CNBC said the comparison was affected by one-time items in the prior-year period, mainly tax benefits tied to Disney’s purchase of Comcast’s Hulu stake.
Excluding specified one-time items, including restructuring costs, Disney’s adjusted EPS increased from $1.61 a year earlier to $2.06. Disney identifies adjusted EPS as a non-GAAP measure, meaning it is not calculated under standard U.S. accounting rules, in its earlier fiscal-2026 earnings materials filed with the SEC.
Disney also said it received an approximately $100 million tariff refund and lifted its fiscal-2026 target for share repurchases to at least $9 billion, from $8 billion. A repurchase is when a company buys its own shares; it can reduce the number of shares outstanding and affect earnings per share, but does not by itself show higher total profit.
The results point to continued strength in the businesses Disney has highlighted for growth. The modest revenue miss and thinner disclosure around streaming and traditional TV leave investors with fewer quarterly measures for judging how broadly that momentum is spreading.
This story draws on original reporting from CNBC.
