Disney earnings rise 12 per cent

Feb 7, 2012, 23:30 GMT

Los Angeles - Disney has started off the year strongly.

The biggest US entertainment conglomerate on Tuesday reported a 12-per-cent rise in first-quarter earnings thanks to strong demand at its theme parks and cruise lines, together with an upturn in advertising on its ESPN sports cable network.

The Los Angeles-based company said its revenue rose 1 per cent to 10.8 billion dollars while profits were 1.5 billion dollars, up 12 per cent from 1.3 billion dollars a year earlier.

'We're off to a good start in this fiscal year,' Disney chief executive and President Bob Iger said in a statement.

Investors didn't agree, sending the company's stock down more than 1 per cent in after-hours trading on concerns about the performance of Disney's movie studios, which failed to register a single blockbuster in the quarter.