Comcast Corp. reported higher earnings, boosted by its theme parks and broadband business, even as cable-TV subscribers continued to ebb away.
The Philadelphia-based owner of Xfinity broadband and cable-TV services, the NBCUniversal media empire and Sky TV, reported earnings of $1.08 a share, excluding some costs, up 13% from the prior year and above the 95 cents analysts predicted. Revenue rose to $30.1 billion, also exceeding forecasts of $29.7 billion.
Comcast, led by Chairman Brian Roberts, is seeking growth beyond its legacy cable-TV operations. Executives are emphasizing other businesses, including the Universal theme parks and film studio, and the Peacock streaming service.
Cord-cutting and increasing competition have eroded Comcast’s traditional customer base. The company lost 490,000 cable-TV customers in the quarter, an ongoing trend as consumers switch to streaming services like Netflix.
Broadband is also becoming increasingly competitive as mobile providers move into the market with improved wireless internet offerings. In the past week, the Big Three — T-Mobile US Inc., AT&T Inc. and Verizon Communications Inc. — all reported subscriber gains.
Although Comcast lost 18,000 broadband subscribers in the quarter, its revenue per customer climbed.
Comcast offers wireless mobile through the Xfinity brand as part of a package for internet subscribers. It added 294,000 mobile phone customers, fewer than the 328,100 analyst predicted. Like broadband losses, the number may reflect stiff competition from other providers.
Streaming service Peacock added 4 million paying subscribers in the quarter for a total of 28 million, nearly doubling from the prior year thanks in part to the appearance of The Super Mario Bros. Movie on the service. Although the business lost $565 million in the quarter, that was better than analysts expected.
Revenue at the film studio dropped almost 24%, to $2.52 billion despite box office success for the movie Oppenheimer, which opened in July. The critically acclaimed film grossed more than $954 million in worldwide box office, making it the year’s third-highest grossing film. The year-to-year comparison suffered because last year’s third quarter included results of Jurassic World and Minions sequels.
Theme park revenue climbed 17% to $2.4 billion. Comcast operates Universal theme parks in Orlando, Florida, and Los Angeles, as well as in Osaka and Beijing.
