Key Takeaways
- Adjusted earnings per share reached $0.79 versus analyst expectations of $0.73
- Total revenue climbed to $31.46 billion, surpassing the $30.43 billion projection
- Domestic broadband subscriber losses improved to just 65,000 versus the anticipated 173,700
- Wireless segment gained 435,000 subscribers; mobile customer count reaches 9.7 million
- NBCUniversal sales jumped approximately 61% driven by Super Bowl and Winter Olympics programming
Comcast delivered first-quarter financial results on Thursday that exceeded analyst expectations across key metrics. Shares rallied as much as 8.2% during premarket hours, touching $31.77.
Adjusted profit per share landed at $0.79, comfortably above the $0.73 Wall Street consensus. Total revenue climbed 5.3% from the prior-year period to $31.46 billion, beating the $30.43 billion analyst forecast.
Net earnings declined roughly 36% to $2.17 billion, translating to $0.60 per share. The year-over-year decrease stems from elevated expenses related to sports broadcasting rights and Olympic event production. Adjusted EBITDA decreased approximately 17% to $7.93 billion.
The domestic broadband subscriber metric emerged as the most closely monitored data point. Comcast reported a loss of only 65,000 residential broadband subscribers during the three-month period. This represents substantial progress compared to the 183,000 departures during the equivalent 2024 quarter, and significantly outperformed the Street’s 173,700 loss estimate.
The connectivity and platforms division — encompassing Xfinity internet, video services, and wireless offerings — continues to generate the company’s highest margins. While revenue in this segment dipped 2% to $17.32 billion, the substantially reduced churn rate provided reassurance to market participants.
The telecommunications giant has intensified efforts to counter competitive pressure from mobile carriers including Verizon and T-Mobile through the introduction of more aggressive pricing strategies throughout the previous twelve months.
Video subscriber attrition also showed improvement. Comcast lost 322,000 cable television customers versus 427,000 departures in the comparable year-earlier quarter.
The wireless business delivered strong performance. The division attracted 435,000 new subscriber connections during the period, expanding the total customer base to 9.7 million.
NBCUniversal’s Record-Breaking February
NBCUniversal delivered exceptional quarterly performance. Management dubbed it “Legendary February,” referencing the concentration of marquee events including the Super Bowl, Winter Olympics, and NBA All-Star Weekend within a single month.
The media division generated a 61% revenue surge to $7.28 billion. Excluding the Olympic Games and Super Bowl contributions, organic growth still registered 13%.
Domestic advertising sales for the media operations exploded 135% to $3.45 billion. NBC commanded an average price of $8 million for each 30-second commercial slot during the Super Bowl broadcast, per CNBC reporting.
Peacock streaming service continued its subscriber expansion. The platform added users to reach 46 million subscribers, representing 12% annual growth, while revenue nearly doubled to $2.1 billion. However, the streaming operation recorded a quarterly loss of $432 million, widening from the $215 million deficit one year prior due to increased sports programming costs.
Studios and Parks Divisions Post Revenue Gains
Beyond the media operations, Comcast’s other business segments delivered positive results. The film studio division reported revenue growth of 21% to $3.43 billion.
Universal theme parks generated revenue of $2.33 billion, marking a 24% increase. The parks segment benefited from Epic Universe, which launched last May.
Company leadership is scheduled to conduct its quarterly conference call with investors at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time on Thursday.
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