Time Warner's Profit, Sales Beat Analyst Forecasts

Time Warner reported on Wednesday a third-quarter net profit of $967 million, or $1.11 a share, down from $1.18 billion, or $1.26 a share, in the year-earlier period. Excluding non-recurring items, such as a benefit related to the reversal of certain tax reserves, adjusted earnings per share were 97 cents. Analysts surveyed by FactSet were expecting, on average, earnings of 94 cents a share. Revenue rose 3% to $6.24 billion, with growth seen across all broadcast segments, to top analyst forecasts of $6.15 billion. The media company also said it expects full-year 2014 adjusted earnings per share, including a tax benefit, to grow in the "high teens" percentage range above 2013 adjusted per-share earnings of $3.51. The stock, which was still inactive ahead of Wednesday's open, has gained 12% year to date through Tuesday, outperforming the S&P 500's 8.9% rise.