Media giant Viacom Inc. (VIA) on Thursday announced a quarterly profit that rose from last year, helped by lowered expenses. The company's bottom line topped expectations.
Revenues were flat for the owner of the Paramount Pictures movie studio and cable networks like MTV and Nickelodeon. Fewer DVD titles led to a top-line slide at its filmed entertainment unit, while its cable networks benefited from a rise in advertising revenues.
The company announced earnings of $420 million, or $0.69 per share. This was up from $277 million, or $0.46 per share, in the same period last year.
Excluding one-time items, the New York-based firm said its profit from continuing operations climbed 40 percent to $418 million from $298 million last year. On a per share basis, adjusted earnings were $0.68 compared to last year's figure of $0.49.
Analysts were looking for the company to make $0.66 per share, according to a survey conducted by Thomson Reuters. Analyst estimates typically exclude one-time items.
Revenue came in at $3.3 billion, essentially flat with last year. Analysts were looking for $3.43 billion.
Revenue was up 6 percent at Viacom's media networks unit, climbing to $2.1 billion. This included a 4 percent rise in domestic advertising revenue.
At filmed entertainment, revenue slipped 10 percent to $1.25 billion. The company blamed a sharp decline in home entertainment revenue. This came as Viacom only released three titles in the quarter versus six titles last year, and suffered lower revenues from third party distribution arrangements.
Worldwide theatrical revenues grew 10% in the quarter, thanks to the strong performance of "Iron Man 2" and "Shrek Forever After."
Looking ahead, Philippe Dauman, president and CEO of Viacom, said, "We are well positioned to capitalize on improving trends in the advertising market."
He added, "We have strong slates of new and returning programming debuting in the coming months on MTV, Nickelodeon, BET, Spike, Comedy Central and other networks, which we continue to deliver to audiences on multiple screens and devices."
The company has built up a larger cash position during the first half of the year. Its cash balances stood at $677 million at the end of the quarter, compared with $298 million at the end of 2009.
Viacom's debt situation has remained stable. Its total debt outstanding, including capital lease obligations, came in at $6.76 billion at the end of the quarter. This compared to $6.77 billion at the end of 2009.
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