Disney on Wednesday jacked up prices at its California and Florida theme parks by as much as 10% on some tickets as the struggling entertainment giant looks to cash in on one of the few healthy parts of its business.
The Mouse House – which is facing a proxy war from billionaire investor Nelson Pelz to grab board seats as the company’s stock hovers near nine-year lows – raised prices at Disneyland by 8.9% on single-day tickets, pushing the cost to $194 to enter the Anaheim park.
The company also spiked the price of yearly passes at Disney World in Orlando by 10% – with the most expensive Incredi-Pass now selling for $1,449, up $50.
Disney won’t increase daily pass prices in Disney World and will keep the cheapest ticket at Disneyland at $104, which hasn’t changed in four years, the company said.
Disney’s parks business recorded a strong rebound from the pandemic but domestic footfall has grown softer recently as a high cost of living likely deters people from spending on theme parks.
Earlier this month, Disney said it will offer discounts on ticket prices for kids at its theme parks for a limited period as it looks to amp up traffic.
The attempts to boost revenue come after Disney revealed a $60 billion spending plan on parks and cruises over the next 10 years – a plan that came amid dwindling cash reserves at the company and had worried some Wall Street analysts with its long road to payoff.
Disney shares were basically unmoved Thursday, closing down 14 cents to $84.85. The company’s stock had fallen to $78.32 on Oct. 4, its lowest level since 2014.
The financial struggles have led Peltz to build up his stake to more than 30 million shares from 6.4 million earlier this year through his Trian Fund Management.
Peltz had pushed for operational changes and cost cuts at the company earlier this year.
But he backed off after Disney CEO Bob Iger initiated a sweeping revamp that slashed 7,000 jobs as part of an effort to achieve $5.5 billion in cost savings.
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