Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA) has released its third-quarter 2023 financial results, revealing adjusted earnings of $1.08 per share, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 14.89%. This marks a notable 12.5% increase from the previous year’s figures.

The company reported consolidated revenues of $30.11 billion, showing a year-over-year growth of 0.9%, outperforming the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1.59%.

In terms of customer statistics, Comcast saw a decrease of 18,000 domestic broadband customers and a significant loss of 490,000 video customers during the reported quarter. However, the company managed to offset these losses by gaining 294,000 wireless customers.

Investors in Comcast have reasons to be content, as the stock has delivered a 22.2% return, outpacing the Consumer Discretionary sector’s modest 1.9% growth.

Detailed Quarterly Insights

• Connectivity & Platforms, contributing 67.3% to revenues, saw a 1.1% YoY increase, reaching $20.27 billion in the reported quarter.
• Residential Connectivity and platforms revenues experienced a 0.7% YoY growth, reaching $17.95 billion, while Business Services Connectivity revenues increased by 4.7% to $2.32 billion.

Content & Experiences revenues rose by 0.8% YoY to $10.55 billion. Media revenues increased by 0.4% YoY, reaching $6.02 billion, while Studios experienced a 23.6% YoY decline to $2.51 billion. In contrast, Theme Parks surged with a 17.2% YoY growth, reaching $2.41 billion.

Comcast’s Peacock streaming service made substantial progress, with paid subscribers in the United States growing by 80% YoY to 28 million. The reported quarter saw a net addition of four million subscribers, leading to a 64% increase in Peacock revenues, which amounted to $830 million.

Operational Details Comcast managed its costs effectively in the third quarter of 2023, with a significant 26.8% YoY reduction to $23.64 billion. Programming and production costs decreased by 3.3% YoY to $8.65 billion, while marketing and promotional expenses reduced by 9.7% YoY to $1.86 billion.

The company’s adjusted EBITDA increased by 5.1% YoY to $9.96 billion. Residential Connectivity and platforms adjusted EBITDA grew by 2.9% YoY to $6.88 billion, and Business Services Connectivity adjusted EBITDA increased by 3.6% YoY to $1.33 billion.

Content & Experiences adjusted EBITDA reached $1.97 billion, marking a 10.2% YoY increase. Theme Parks adjusted EBITDA stood at $983 million, showing a 20% YoY increase, while Media adjusted EBITDA experienced a 6.5% YoY growth, reaching $723 million. However, Studios reported an adjusted EBITDA of $429 million, marking a 22.2% YoY decline.

Cash Flow & Liquidity As of September 30, 2023, Comcast held $6.43 billion in cash and cash equivalents, a decrease from the $7.15 billion recorded on June 30, 2023. Additionally, consolidated total debt as of September 30, 2023, amounted to $97.32 billion, slightly lower than the $97.5 billion reported on June 30, 2023.

During the third quarter of 2023, Comcast generated $8.15 billion in cash from operations, up from $7.2 billion in the previous quarter. Free cash flow amounted to $4.03 billion in the reported quarter, compared to $3.4 billion in the previous quarter. The company returned a total of $4.7 billion to shareholders, utilizing a combination of dividend payments ($1.2 billion) and share repurchases ($3.5 billion).

Featured Image: Megapixl

Please See Disclaimer