Comcast Posts Big Revenue Jump
While its hostile bid for
Disney
(DIS) - Get Report
was the talk of Wall Street,
Comcast
(CMCSA) - Get Report
also reported earnings Wednesday that far surpassed analysts' estimates on a big rebound in subscriber growth.
The cable operator earned $383 million, or 17 cents a share, on revenue of $4.74 billion, compared with a loss of $51 million, or 3 cents a share, on revenue of $3.00 billion a year ago. The year-ago quarter included a $105 million loss from discontinued operations.
Analysts had been forecasting earnings of 3 cents a share on revenue of $4.74 billion, according to Thomson One Analytics.
The company's cable division added 373,000 digital cable subscribers during the quarter and 70,000 basic cable subscribers, and produced operating cash flow of $1.71 billion, up 63% from last year, on a pro forma basis. The operating cash flow margin in the cable unit was 38% in the quarter, up from a pro forma 25.3% last year.
In its content segment, revenue was $250 million in the fourth quarter, up 13.4% from a year ago, while operating cash flow was $58 million, up 23.1% from a year ago.
The company expects 2004 revenue to rise about 10% from the $18.35 billion it put up in 2003, with broadband Internet revenue up by more than 30%. It expects to spend about $3.3 billion on its cable system this year.