Disney, SeaWorld earning reports: Tourism booming, hotel numbers down

Decrease in hotel bookings partly due to vacation home rentals

ORLANDO, Fla. – Walt Disney shares fell in after-hours trading Tuesday afternoon after the company missed quarterly earnings expectations.

Overall revenue rose 32.9% to $20.2 billion, and revenue from parks, experiences and products rose by 7% to $6.6 billion. 

Attendance at U.S. Disney parks and resorts was down although guest spending was up.

SeaWorld Entertainment Inc. on Tuesday reported a second-quarter profit of $52.7 million.
The Orlando-based company said it had net income of 64 cents per share.

The results exceeded Wall Street expectations. SeaWorld shares also ended the day down 1.33%. The average estimate of eight analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of 52 cents per share.

The theme park operator posted revenue of $406 million in the period, which did not meet Wall Street forecasts. Eight analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $410.7 million.

SeaWorld shares have climbed 32% since the beginning of the year. The stock has climbed 38% in the last 12 months.

Central Florida's Hotel and Lodging Association said hotel bookings are down slightly, 1-2% compared to the same time last year after unprecedented economic prosperity for nine years straight.

The CFHLA blamed the decrease in bookings partly on the rise in the popularity of vacation rental homes.

Vacation home rental website Airbnb said Floridian hosts and homeowners earned a combined $810 million in supplemental income while welcoming approximately 4.5 million guest arrivals to the state in 2018 through the platform.

There are now over 45,000 Floridian hosts who share their homes via Airbnb, typically earning about $6,500 annually in supplemental income, Airbnb said.

The CFHLA also cited concern over a future possible economic downturn. Some employers are beginning to scale back business trips to Central Florida, the CFHLA said.


About the Authors:

Erik von Ancken anchors and reports for News 6 and is a two-time Emmy award-winning journalist in the prestigious and coveted "On-Camera Talent" categories for both anchoring and reporting.

Recommended Videos