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Fox Tops Profit Estimates Despite Super Bowl Drag on Revenue

Management points to the World Cup for near-term ad upside.

Overview

  • Fox reported fiscal third-quarter results Monday, posting adjusted EPS of $1.32 and EBITDA of $954 million that beat forecasts even as revenue fell to $3.99 billion.
  • Reported advertising sales dropped to $1.56 billion because this quarter lacked a Super Bowl broadcast, and CEO Lachlan Murdoch said underlying ad growth would have been double digits without that comparison.
  • GAAP net income declined to $166 million from $346 million in the prior-year period as last year’s quarter included Super Bowl windfall.
  • Distribution fees and cable pricing strengthened results, with Cable Network Programming revenue rising to $1.74 billion and cable distribution revenue up 5% despite subscriber declines.
  • Tubi kept building scale with revenue up 23% and nearly 100 million monthly users, and shares rose about 4% after the release as executives highlighted the FIFA Men’s World Cup and two added NFL games as near-term ad drivers.