Disney Results Miss As Fox Studio Business Underwhelm

Disney is feeling some pain from its biggest transformation in decades as its acquisition of Fox’s entertainment businesses contributed to a 39% drop in earnings.

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CEO Bob Iger said one of the biggest issues affecting earnings was underperformance at the Fox movie and TV studio. Tuesday’s results, the first complete quarter with Fox’s businesses included, missed Wall Street’s expectations. Disney’s shares fell 3% in aftermarket trading. The Fox studio was “well below where we hoped it would be when we made the acquisition,” Iger said during a conference call with analysts.

Particularly underperforming was “Dark Phoenix,” a Fox X-Men movie that failed to find its audience. That offset box office successes such as “Avengers: Endgame.”