With the closure of Disney theme parks around the world, the delay of Disney movie production, and the cancellation of ESPN sports programs, Disney is warning investors that the immediate performance of the company is uncertain.
According to CNBC, Disney issued a warning to investors in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission about the significant impacts the coronavirus has had on operations.
Because of all of the closures, cancellations, and delays that Disney is facing analysts are projecting that the current situation “will materially weaken Disney’s operating and credit profile over the near term (next two to three quarters.”
Theme Parks
With all of the Disney theme parks around the world closed, Disney is seeing a loss of billions of dollars, and the longer they stay closed, the larger the loss gets.
On top of that, if the parks do not reopen soon they could even delay some major openings which would bring in guests and revenue. Most notably, Avengers Campus is set to open in July and could potentially see delays depending on the length of the closure.
Film Releases
As for Disney films, there have already been postponements for the release of Mulan, New Mutants, Antlers, Black Widow, The Personal History of David Copperfield, and The Woman in the Window.
Last year, Disney took in $11 billion from studio releases globally in 2019, so all of these delays could seriously impact the total earnings.
ESPN
Lastly, we have seen a lot of sports leagues cancelling and postponing seasons. What does this mean for ESPN?
According to ESPN’s executive vice president of programming acquisitions and scheduling, the stations will continue to cover the sports world (such as the effect the current situation has on the industry at large).
ESPN is also hoping to “entertain fans through fun, compelling archival content and/or themed and stunt event programming that will provide a diversion at a time that there are virtually no other live sports to watch.”
What do you think of the future at Disney? Share your thoughts in the comments!
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