Accounting Research Project: Walt Disney

2012 Acc enquiry Project The Walt Disney connection Ticker Symbol NYSEDIS A brief analysis of the fraternitys products, history, and pecuniary operations every(prenominal)place the ultimately course of instruction. universal Overview The Walt Disney Company (NYSEDIS) is champion that I take away been familiar with my entire life. However, I have never known much about the business lieu of the community.It was founded in 1923 by Roy and Walt Disney, who came to Hollywood from Kansas City, Missouri. Walt and Roy produced a short animated image series that became known as the Alice Comedies. The small studio in which they worked was outgrown and replaced by a larger facility, where they became Disney Bros. Studio (Disney Archives). In 1928, Mickey Mouse was born, followed by Pluto, Goofy, and the rest of the Disney gang, and the Disney Brothers Studio became the Walt Disney Studio. Disneys low gear full-length animated plastic drive came out in 1937.Snow White and t he Seven Dwarfs became the highest grossing film by 1939 and the first animated feature film ever produced (studioservices. go. com). During World War II, issue was slow, and Disney was contracted into creating propaganda films to endorse the war and boost morale on the fundament front. However, in 1950, Cinderella revived the company and the Walt Disney Productions theme park cast was mend in motion, opening Disneyland in 1955. Walt Disney died in 1966 of lung cancer (age 66), and his brother Roy took over as chairman, chief operating officer and president.The Walt Disney World Resort opened in Orlando, Florida in 1971, and Disney began to make its way into live-action films. Since then, the Walt Disney Company has made its name in the family and recreation business, becoming one of the largest and most influential companies worldwide, owning markets in China, Japan, North America, Europe, Africa, the optic East, Australia, and Russia. The company headquarters is located in Burbank, California, headed by Chairman and CEO Bob Iger, who ook over the company in 2005 and acquired other such productions as Pixar (2006), Marvel Entertainment (2009), and Lucasfilm (2012) (thewaltdisneycompany. com). As well as owning several media networks, hotels and resorts, Disney Consumer Products, tally to the companys website, is the business segment of The Walt Disney Company and its affiliates that extends the Disney brand to production ranging from appargonl, toys, home decor and books and magazines to foods and beverages, stationary, electronics and fine art.This is accomplished through a franchise-based licensing validation focused on strategic brand priorities, includingDisney Classic Characters & Disney Baby Disney choke Action Film Disney Media Networks & Games, Disney & Pixar Animation Studios Disney Princess & Disney FairiesandMarvel. Other businesses involved in Disneys consumer products gross sales be Disney Publishing Worldwide, the worlds largest pub lisher of childrens books and magazines, andwww. DisneyStore. omandwww. DisneyStore. co. uk, the companys official shopping portals. The Disney Store retail chain, which de yeted in 1987, is owned and operated by Disney in North America, Europe, and Japan (thewaltdisneycompany. com). In new-fangled news, Netflix announced on December 4, 2012 that it has signed a multi-year supervise with The Walt Disney Company. According to the expression by Ramon Aranda, this will give Netflix the exclusive rights to fertilize feature films available for users to watch instantly.Ted Sarandos, Chief Content Officer at Netflix said, Disney and Netflix have shared a long and mutually beneficial kin and this deal will bring to our subscribers, in the first pay TV window, some of the highest-quality, most imaginative family films being made today Its a bold leap forward for Internet television and we are incredibly pleased and proud this iconic family brand is teaming with Netflix to make it happe n. The article also states that the financial terms of this agreement have not been disclosed.Another recent event for the company was the purchase of the Star Wars franchise Lucasfilm for four one million million dollars at the end of October. 100 share owned by laminitis George Lucas, an article in USA Today says Disney received the empire at a appeal of $4 million, 40 million Disney shares, and a year and half pursuit. This amount of shares makes Lucas the companys second largest non-institutional shareholder of Disney, by and by the trust of Steve Jobs (Krantz, Matt, et. al). The article goes on to note that this deals marks Disneys stern largest deal ever, after Capital Cities/ABC (1995), Pixar (2006), and Fox Family (2001).Disney plans to expand on the Star Wars film schedule. CEO Bob Iger said, our long term plan is to release a new Star Wars feature film every two to three years, beginning with Episode VII hopefully let go in 2015. George Lucas will serve as a creat ive consultant, but plans to retire, saying, For the past 35 years, one of my greatest pleasures has been to seeStar Warspassed from one generation to the next. Its now time for me to pass Star Wars on to a new generation of filmmakers (Krantz, Matt, et. al).The watercourse price per share of the companys common stock is $48. 67. This number has fluctuated a bit over the last year, but has remained mostly close to the recent price. The lowest price over the last year has been $34. 52, with the highest price at $53. 40 (thewaltdisneycompany. com). Financial post (2012) According the companys most recent accounting statements (2012 fiscal year), total assets equaled $74,898 total liabilities equaled $32,940, and the total equity for the year totaled $41,958 (in millions). $74,898 = $32,940 + $41,958The company earned a net income of $5. 682 million, an eighteen per centum increment from the preceding year. The earnings per share during the year 2012 increased 24 part to $3. 13 from $2. 52 the prior year. Earnings per share is important because it is a euphony of a companys profitability. It is one of the most closely watched financial ratios in the business world. The revenues for The Walt Disney Company totaled $42. 278 billion, a 4 percent increase from the former year. Two of Disneys competitors, News Corp. and Time Warner Inc. have revenues that fall significantly lower than this corporate giant, with News Corp. revenues totaling $33. 88 billion and Time Warner Inc. at $28. 76 billion. Disneys current assets total $13. 709 billion, with current liabilities totaling $12. 813 billion. The current ratio 13. 709/12. 813 = 1. 07. The current ratio generally shows the ability of a company to pay back debts. However, if a company is good at managing and planning cash flows, a low number does not necessarily mean they cannot pay back its debts on time.This number has decreased compared to the previous year, which had a current ratio of 1. 13. Disneys long- term assets include film and television costs, investments, parks, resorts, and other properties (attractions, buildings, and equipment), projects in progress, land, intangible assets, and goodwill 82 percent of Disneys assets are long-term. Compared to prior periods, these assets have increased (approximately $2 billion more than 2011). In addition, The Walt Disney Company calculates depreciation using the straight-line method.The long-term liabilities of The Walt Disney Company total $20. 127 billion, or 61 percent of the total liabilities, compared to 63 percent of total liabilities in 2011. Disney has over one trillion shares in circulation currently, two of preferred stock and common stock outstanding. The company saw an increase in cash and cash equivalents of $202 million, giving Disney an end of year counterpoise of $3. 387 billion, compared to the $3. 185 billion from the previous year. According to Disneys report, cash provided by operations increased 14 percent compared to 2011.The increase in cash provided by operations was due to higher segment operating results and the timing of and ameliorate receivable collections, partially offset by higher income tax defrayals, the payment of interest accrued in prior years on Disneyland capital of France borrowings, and higher film production spending (thewaltdisneycompany. com). Disney uses the comely-cost method in site to calculate inventory, stating, Inventory primarily includes vacation timeshare units, merchandise, materials, and supplies.Carrying amounts of vacation ownership units are recorded at the lower of cost or net realizable value. Carrying amounts of merchandise, materials, and supplies inventories are generally determined on a moving average cost basis and are recorded at the lower of cost or market. Only a small portion of the total assets is delineate by inventory. In 2012, the inventory only accounted for 2 percent of the companys total assets, which is consistent with the 2 perc ent of total assets in 2011. Work Cited A History of The Walt Disney Company. Disney 23. Web. 12 Dec. 2012. http//d23. disney. go. com/archives/a-history-of-the-walt-disney-company/ Aranda, Ramon. Netflix Announces Multi-Year Agreement with The Walt Disney Company. examiner. com(2012) n. pag. Web. 13 Dec 2012. http//www. examiner. com/article/netflix-announces-multi-year-agreement-with-the-walt-disney-company. Disney Studio Services. The Walt Disney Studios History. Web. 12 Dec. 2012. http//studioservices. go. om/disneystudios/history. html Krantz, Matt, Mike Snider, Marco Della Cava, and Bryan Alexander. Disney buys Lucasfilm for $4 billion. USA Today. 30 2012 n. page. Web. 16 Dec. 2012. http//www. usatoday. com/story/money/business/2012/10/30/disney-star-wars-lucasfilm/1669739/. The Walt Disney Company. Annual Report The Walt Disney Company Reports Fourth Quarter and panoptic Year Earnings for Fiscal 2012. Burbank The Walt Disney Company, 2012. 15 Dec. 2012. http//thewaltdisney company. com/