21st Century Fox Reports Lower Quarterly Earnings

NEW YORK: For the quarter that ended June 30, 21st Century Fox reported revenues of $6.2 billion, down from the $8.4 billion in the prior-year Q4, and net income of $87 million, compared to the year-ago's $999 million.

Last year's total included revenue from the DBS business. Excluding that, revenue was down 9 percent.

In the cable network programming segment, operating income was up 1 percent to $1.22 billion. A 7 percent increase in revenues from higher affiliate and ad revenues was offset by a 10 percent increase in expenses, largely from sports. Domestic affiliate revenue was up 12 percent, while domestic ad revenue decreased 2 percent.

The company's television segment delivered $113 million in operating income, compared to the $145 million reported in the same quarter a year ago. Higher retransmission consent revenues were more than offset by lower ad revenues and higher sports programming costs. Quarterly ad revenues were down 14 percent, due in part to lower ratings for American Idol and The Following.

Filmed entertainment, meanwhile, generated Q4 operating income of $269 million, compared to $339 million in the same period a year ago. The company said that more than half of this decrease was due to the absence of contributions from Shine. It also reflects lower contributions from the TV production business, with lower network revenue from fewer episodes of Glee and the absence of a new season of 24.

Executive Chairman Rupert Murdoch said: “We made clear operational strides over the last year that will further position us to benefit from the strong and growing global demand for high-quality video content. We delivered a solid financial performance, driven by sustained gains in affiliate fees, while we continued to invest in building our new channels Fox Sports 1, FXX and Star Sports. The appeal of our new sports rights resonated with consumers globally, whether it was STAR Sports in India setting new records with hundreds of millions of viewers for the ICC Cricket World Cup, or the more than 25 million viewers who watched the Women's World Cup Final on FOX. Our film studio achieved outstanding critical and box-office success with a truly diverse range of films and we are proud of the creative excellence that earned it the most Academy Awards in the industry. Our company is well positioned for this time of opportunity in our industry. We will balance the utilization of our strong balance sheet to drive growth. Today’s announcement of our new $5 billion buyback authorization reflects our ongoing program to provide direct shareholder returns.”