Revenues, Profit Decline at 21st Century Fox

NEW YORK: Revenues at 21st Century Fox were down 6 percent to $6.08 billion in the company's first quarter, largely due to reduced revenues at its filmed entertainment division.

The company also attributed the drop to the lack of revenues from Shine. However, it did show improved performances at its cable networks programming segment, thanks to higher affiliate and ad revenues.

Commenting on the results, executive chairman Rupert Murdoch said: “Our cable-networks business generated strong growth in the first fiscal quarter, delivering double-digit earnings gains both domestically and internationally on sustained increases in overall affiliate fees, higher advertising revenues and lower expenses. Our quarterly results also reflect the expected impact of challenging comparisons for our film studio due to the timing of key releases, as well as the poor performance of The Fantastic Four. We are pleased with the recent success of The Martian, and as we look forward, we have an exciting film slate which includes this weekend’s The Peanuts Movie, the holiday release of Joy, as well as the summer releases of the newest X-Men and Independence Day. Good progress is being made at the FOX Network both from our returning series, including the continued success of Empire, as well as some of our new series. We are focused on creating compelling storytelling and enhancing the customer experience of our digital video brands as we respond to changing consumer preferences."

Cable network programming revenues rose to $3.5 billion, with an OIBDA that rose to $1.3 billion. U.S. affiliate revenues were up 11 percent and ad revenues up 4 percent. Currency fluctuations was a key factor in the 1-percent reductions in affiliate and ad revenues internationally. Television revenues were flat at $1.05 billion, but OIBDA rose to $196 million. Filmed entertainment took a significant hit, with revenues falling to $1.8 billion and OIBDA dropping to $149 million. The company attributed this to lower theatrical revenues, the absence of contributions from Shine, syndication revenues that were down from the previous year and the adverse impact of the strengthened U.S. dollar.

The year-ago results also included the DTH businesses in Italy and Germany that are now part of the combined Sky operation.

Net income attributable to 21st Century Fox shareholders fell from $1.04 billion last year to $675 million.