Twenty-First Century Fox's 1Q revenue rises
Rupert Murdoch's Twenty-First Century Fox Inc. (NASDAQ:FOXA) reported a 7.6 percent rise first-quarter revenue on Wednesday, as higher advertising sales boosted its cable business.
Fox said revenue rose to $7.00 billion in the quarter ended Sept. 30, from $6.51 billion a year earlier.
Net income attributable to shareholders increased to $855 million, or 46 cents per share, from $821 million, or 44 cents per share.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FOXA | TFCF CORP. | 30.35 | +0.26 | +0.86% |
| NWS | NEWS CORP. | 25.00 | -0.11 | -0.44% |
The results come after the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday that Fox had, in the last few weeks, held talks about selling most of its film and television assets to Walt Disney Co. (NYSE:DIS) The two sides are not currently in discussion, the reports added.
Fox did not address the report in its quarterly statement.
The reported talks with Disney adds another layer of uncertainty to Fox's bid to buy the rest the nearly 61 percent of European pay-TV group Sky Plc it does not already own in an offer worth $14.5 billion made in December.
The offer is being closely scrutinized by the British government. Murdoch has repeatedly stated that deal would be approved in the first half of 2018.
"Absent further delays, the transaction is expected to close by June 30, 2018," Fox said on Wednesday.
Twenty-First Century Fox Inc. is the parent of FOX Business and Fox News.
(Reporting by Aishwarya Venugopal in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza)