21st Century Fox Shares Rally After Profit, Sales Beat

Shares of 21st Century Fox rallied 2.4% in after-hours trade, after the TV and film entertainment company reported better-than-expected fiscal second-quarter results and raised its dividend. For the quarter ended Dec. 31, net earnings from continuing operations rose to $6.22 billion, or $2.89 a share, from $982 million, or 43 cents a share, in the year-earlier period. Excluding non-recurring items, adjusted earnings per share were 53 cents, beating the FactSet consensus analyst estimate of 44 cents. Total sales slipped to $8.06 billion from $8.16 billion, as declines in TV and direct broadcast satellite TV revenue offset growth in filmed entertainment. Meanwhile, adjusted revenue increased to $7.42 billion from $6.73 billion, topping analyst projections of $7.08 billion. Separately, the company said it raised its semi-annual dividend by 20% to 15 cents a share.