Viacom Swings to a Profit but Misses Expectations

By Lisa Beilfuss 

Viacom Inc. swung to a profit in its latest quarter but results fell short of expectations as the media giant continues to grapple with shifts in how people consume media.

Shares in Viacom have tumbled nearly 40% over the past year, reflecting weak ratings and concerns over the rise of cord-cutting. The stock got a boost recently on a report that Viacom and Dish Network Corp. renewed their carriage agreement and avoided service interruptions, pushing the stock into positive territory on the year.

The company is in the midst of selling a piece of Paramount Pictures, a gem in Sumner Redstone's media empire. Despite struggling at the box office, Paramount has said it is fielding interest from three dozen companies and is looking for an investor to help boost its international and digital businesses. Viacom didn't provide an update on a potential transaction in its news release Thursday.

The New York company, which owns channels including MTV, Nickelodeon and Comedy Central, said revenue from its media networks business, its biggest, fell 2.9% in its March quarter. Operating income in the segment dropped 11%, while Viacom's film business turned to a loss in the quarter.

"We are responding to industry consumption shifts," Chief Executive Philippe Dauman said Thursday, adding that Viacom is "generating meaningful results" in content creation, audience measurement and distribution. "There is much more work to be done, but we see the path to growth ahead," Mr. Dauman said.

Over all, the company reported a profit of $303 million, or 76 cents a share, up from a loss of $53 million, or 13 cents, a year earlier. Excluding restructuring costs, among other items, earnings per share fell to 76 cents from $1.16.

Revenue slipped 2.5% to $3.0 billion. Analysts projected $1.43 in adjusted earnings per share and $3.21 billion in revenue, according to Thomson Reuters.

Write to Lisa Beilfuss at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 28, 2016 07:52 ET (11:52 GMT)

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