Comcast revenue misses estimates, dragged down by parks, studios

Comcast Corp. reported second-quarter revenue that missed analysts’ estimates, dragged down by a slower season at its movie studios and theme parks.

Revenue fell 2.7% to $29.7 billion, the company said in a statement Monday, missing the $30 billion average of analysts’ projections. Revenue from studios tumbled 27% while sales at theme parks fell 11%.

After having two of last year’s highest-grossing films with The Super Mario Bros. Movie and Fast X, Universal Studios didn’t have a blockbuster to compare with those in the latest quarter.

The company’s parks rebounded strong from the Covid-19 pandemic, but since then customers have been branching out to other forms of entertainment, including international travel and cruises. That shift coincided with Comcast’s timeline for introducing new attractions and a hole in this year’s calendar of ride openings. The Epic Universe theme park, originally scheduled to open this year in Orlando, was pushed back until 2025.

Revenue from the parks division fell to $1.98 billion, missing the $2.21 billion seen by analysts. The film and TV division reported $2.25 billion in sales, compared with estimates of $2.51 billion.

Earnings for the quarter rose to $1.21 a share, excluding some items, beating Wall Street projections of $1.12.

In the company’s largest business segment, providing cable, internet and phone services, earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization rose 1.6% to $8.48 billion. That was ahead of Wall Street forecasts, driven by cost efficiencies and 322,000 new wireless phone customers.

The Philadelphia-based giant, which operates the Xfinity-brand of internet and cable services, lost 120,000 broadband customers in the period, as competition heats up with telecom companies offering wireless internet alternatives.

Verizon Communications Inc. reported on Monday that it has more than 3.8 million fixed wireless customers, an increase of almost 69% from a year earlier. Fixed wireless delivers high-speed internet over airwaves rather than through cable or fiber lines.

Comcast also lost 419,000 video subscribers as people continued to cancel cable TV for streaming. Its own streaming product, Peacock, has struggled to compete with industry giant Netflix Inc. and others including offerings from the Walt Disney Co.

Peacock reported 33 million subscribers, up 38% from a year ago but missing analysts’ average forecast for 34.7 million. The network narrowed its loss to $348 million before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.