Trefis Team
4 min read
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Shares of Walt Disney (DIS) have returned 16.5% since July 22, outpacing the 3.1% return for the S&P 500. Yet on its August 5 earnings call, management said consumers at its parks in Shanghai and Hong Kong had weakened, and that this was continuing into Q4. When asked on that call whether Disney’s promotional offers were meant to offset weaker international visits, management said it has been deploying promotional offers regularly and that they should not be read as a gauge of the health of its business. If park visitors pulled back more widely, how much of Disney would that touch?
How Much Of Disney’s Revenue Comes From Parks?
Nearly two-fifths. Experiences, the Disney segment that holds its parks, brought in $36.2 billion in fiscal 2025, or 38.3% of the company’s revenue that year. Park revenue comes from two things: how many guests arrive, and how much each one spends. A pullback would show up in both metrics. It would also arrive while Disney spends a guided $9 billion on capital projects in fiscal 2026, spending that management said is turbocharging growth at Experiences.
Guest numbers and spending per guest both rose in the latest quarter Disney has reported. In fiscal Q3 2026, Disney’s global guest count rose 4% from a year earlier, and management said spending per guest at its US parks grew 4%. Management also said strong domestic tourists and local residents helped offset continued softness in international attendance, and that forward bookings at Walt Disney World are up nicely. For now, the weakness sits in Disney’s parks abroad, not in the segment as a whole.
Disney Earns Most Of Its Revenue Beyond Parks
Entertainment, which includes its streaming business, brought in $42.5 billion in fiscal 2025, more than Experiences.
Disney also earns well above its interest bill. Over the past twelve months, its operating income was 8.4 times its interest expense.
Disney’s buyback uses almost all of its free cash flow. Over the past twelve months, the company produced $8.29 billion of free cash flow and spent $8.25 billion buying back its own shares. In August, management raised its fiscal 2026 buyback guide to $9 billion, up from the $8 billion it gave in May, and said investing back in the business is always its first priority for cash. Management said the larger buyback is funded largely by cash once set aside for the OpenAI deal and by expected proceeds from the A&E sale.
How Have Disney Shares Held Up In Past Shocks?
