Viacom's Movie Business Weighs on Revenue
Owner of Comedy Central, MTV Sees Slight Growth in Cable Network Revenue
The results missed analysts' expectations.
Viacom—whose U.S. networks include Comedy Central, MTV and BET—has sought to broaden its domestic and international reach. In May, Viacom said it reached a deal to buy the U.K.'s Channel 5 Broadcasting Ltd. for about $759.2 million.
For the period ended June 30, Viacom posted earnings of $610 million, or $1.40 a share, compared with $643 million, or $1.33 a share, in the year-ago quarter. Adjusted earnings from continuing operations rose to $1.42 a share from $1.29 a share.
Revenue fell 7.4% to $3.42 billion.
Analysts had projected $1.44 a share in earnings and $3.56 billion in revenue, according to Thomson Reuters.
Viacom's media networks division, which includes the cable networks, posted $2.59 billion in revenue, up less than 1% from a year ago. The division benefited from higher advertising revenue, offset by flat affiliate fee revenue and lower results from distribution agreements.
The company's filmed-entertainment division posted a 26% decline in revenue to $856 million, as revenue from theatrical releases slipped because of the amount and timing of releases.
Viacom said it expects to reap good results from its blockbuster "Transformers: Age of Extinction," which opened at the end of the most recent quarter and played mainly in July, and "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles," which opens this week.