The Walt Disney Co. made several big announcements this month, including the naming of a new chief financial officer.
Hugh F. Johnston has been named senior executive vice president and chief financial officer of Disney effective Dec. 4. Johnston is currently the chief financial officer of PepsiCo, the food and beverage manufacturer and distributor.
As Disney’s chief financial officer, Johnston will report directly to Chief Executive Bob Iger and will lead the company’s worldwide finance organization, which includes corporate real estate, corporate strategy and business development, enterprise controllership, enterprise technology, financial planning and analysis, global product and labor standards, global security, investor relations, risk management, tax and treasury, according to a release from the company from Nov. 6.
“Hugh’s well-earned reputation as one of the best CFOs in America and his wealth of leadership experience in both financial and operational roles overseeing a diverse portfolio of top global brands make him a perfect addition to Disney’s senior leadership team,” Iger said in a statement. “His expertise will serve Disney and its shareholders well as we continue the transformative work we are doing to drive growth and value creation.”
Johnston said that he shared Iger’s enthusiasm for Disney’s future and that he was excited to join the management team in this moment of opportunity and possibility.
“Disney is such a storied company, with the most beloved brands in the world and a strong financial foundation to support the company of the future that Bob and his team are building,” Johnston said in a statement “Very few companies have withstood the test of time that Disney has, making the company as rare as it is special.”
Johnston joined PepsiCo in 1987 and was named as CFO in 2010. He has held a variety of senior level positions with the company based in Purchase, New York, including executive vice president of global operations, president of Pepsi-Cola North America, senior vice president of transformation and senior vice president of mergers and acquisitions.
In his statement, Iger thanked Kevin Lansberry, who stepped into the CFO role on an interim basis earlier this year.
“Kevin has provided steady leadership and invaluable counsel to our executive management team, and he will continue to be one of our company’s most important financial leaders as he returns to his role as CFO of our Disney Experiences segment,” Iger said.
Big buy
The Burbank entertainment and media giant also said on Nov. 1 it would acquire the 33% stake in Hulu LLC owned by NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast Corp. The company will pay at least $8.6 billion for it.
“The acquisition of Comcast’s stake in Hulu at fair market value will further Disney’s streaming objectives,” the company said in a release from Nov. 1.
Iger said in a conference call from Nov. 8 with analysts to discuss Disney’s fourth quarter financials that the company remains on track to roll out a more unified one-app experience domestically with Hulu, making extensive general entertainment content available to bundle subscribers via Disney+.
“We expect that Hulu and Disney+ will result in increased engagement, greater advertising opportunities, lower churn and reduced customer acquisition costs, thereby increasing our overall margins,” Iger said.
However, the amount paid by Disney for Hulu could be more than $8.6 billion.
Under the appraisal process agreed to by Disney and Comcast, Hulu’s equity fair value will be assessed as of Sept. 30, and if the value is ultimately determined to be greater than the guaranteed floor value (of $27.5 billion), Disney will pay NBCU its percentage of the difference between the equity fair value and the guaranteed floor value, the company said.
“While the timing of the appraisal process is uncertain, we anticipate it should be completed during the (next) calendar year,” Disney said.