WALT DISNEY - DISNEY FINDS PLENTY OF TREASURE IN PIRATES' CHEST

Continuing a spectacular two-year rebound under CEO Robert Iger, the Walt Disney Co. on Wednesday reported earnings of $1.7 billion in its first-quarter ended Dec. 30 against $734 million during the same period a year ago, a rise of 132 percent. The results included one-time-only earnings from Disney's $1.1-billion sales of its stakes in US Weekly and E! Entertainment Channel. Excluding those sales, profits rose 43 percent. In an interview with Bloomberg News, Mediatech Capital Partners analyst Porter Bibb praised Iger for doing "an unbelievably good job." The company's biggest gains came from DVD sales, including those from Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, Cars, and a rerelease of The Little Mermaid. The DVD results more than offset losses for such theatrical disappointments as Déjà Vu and Santa Clause 3. Asked during a conference call about the effect on DVD sales of Disney's decision to sell movie downloads on Apple's iTunes Store, CO Tom Skaggs replied, ""I think that it's safe to assume that given the strong results we saw in DVD, we were selling through strong numbers through all of our major retail partners. And we're pleased and hopefully, they're pleased. ... We also feel they must see the same evidence we do of the lack of cannibalization."

08/02/2007