Disney Shares Hit All-Time High

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Shares in Walt Disney Co. hit a new all-time high Wednesday, the day after the company reported strong quarterly earnings.

The Burbank entertainment and media giant closed at $101.28, up more than 7 percent from the day before on the New York Stock Exchange.

The new high represents a 42 percent increase from a year ago.

Shares went up following Disney announcing fiscal first quarter results of net income of $2.2 billion ($1.27 a share) for the quarter ended Dec. 27, compared with $1.8 billion ($1.03) in the same period a year earlier. Revenue increased 9 percent to $13.4 billion.

Analysts on average expected net income of $1.07 a share on revenue of $12.9 billion, according to Thomson Financial Network.

Strong sales of “Frozen” merchandise contributed to Disney outpacing analyst earnings’ estimates in its fiscal first quarter and helping with revenue of $1.4 billion, or a 22 percent increase from the prior year, for the consumer products division.

Studio entertainment dropped 2 percent to $1.9 billion as box office results for the animated movie “Big Hero 6” did not match those with “Frozen” from the same period a year earlier. Home entertainment was strong on sales of “Frozen” and “Guardians of the Galaxy.”

Media networks revenue increased 11 percent to $5.9 billion while parks and resorts increased 9 percent to $3.4 billion. The interactive segment dropped 5 percent to $384 million as sales slowed for its console games.

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