Viacom Profit Beats Estimates, But Revenue Falls Short As No Major Films Released

Viacom Inc. said Thursday it had net earnings of $591 million, or $1.47 a share, in its fiscal third quarter, compared with $610 million, or $1.40 a share, in the year-earlier period. Adjusted per-share earnings also came to $1.47, matching the FactSet consensus. Revenue fell 11% to $3.058 billion from $3.421 billion and was below the FactSet consensus of $3.206 billion. The revenue decline was due to a 44% decline in theatrical revenue in the filmed entertainment segment, which had no major releases in the quarter. Revenue at media networks rose by $6 million to $2.6 billion, driven by higher affiliate fees. Viacom is home to a wide range of networks, including Comedy Central, Nickloldeon, MTV, VH1, Spike, BET, CMT, TV Land, Nick at Nite, Nick Jr., Channel 5 (UK), Logo, Nicktoons, TeenNick and Paramount Channel. Shares were not yet active in premarket trade, but are down 32% in the year so far, while the S&P 500 has gained about 2%.