Revenue climbed 15 percent at 21st Century Fox during its most recent quarterly period powered largely by the media company’s cable holdings, but the overall report was a lackluster one, with net income falling dramatically.
The company reported $8.16 billion in revenue for the three months ending in December, compared to $7.11 billion of revenue in the year-ago period. Wall Street had projected the company would report $7.89 billion in revenue.
Earnings per share of 43 cents were slightly less than the 45 cents the company reported in the year-ago period, but did beat consenus estimates of 33 cents. Excluding buybacks of BSkyB shares, earnings were 33 cents a shares, in line with estimates.
Net income cut in half falling from $2.4 billion in the year-ago period to $1.2 billion in the most recent quarter.
Fox attributed the decline in profitability to the launches of new channels, such as Fox Sports and FXX and the ratings woes of “The X-Factor.” The company said revenue growth was partly due to its satellite television segment, particularly the inclusion of Sky Deutschland revenue in its balance sheet.
More to come…