Fox Corp beat Wall Street estimates for third-quarter profit on Wednesday (May 8), due to lower expenses, even as its revenue tumbled more than 15 per cent on weakness in its advertising business.
The media company benefited from a near 25 per cent fall in operating expenses in the quarter. That helped it report an adjusted profit of US$1.09 per share, compared with LSEG estimates of 96 US cents.
Shares of the company behind the Fox sports network and Fox News were up 1.3 per cent in early trading.
Fox also posted a net income of US$666 million, compared with a loss of US$54 million a year earlier, thanks to the absence of charges tied to its settlement last year with Dominion Voting Systems.
The company’s ad revenue fell by more than a third in the first three months of the year as Fox grappled with the lack of a Super Bowl broadcast and fewer National Football League games.
Media companies have seen a decline in ad dollars in the past year as an uncertain economic environment pressured spending at marketers.
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Fox reported total revenue of US$3.45 billion for the period, compared with US$4.08 billion a year earlier. The figure was in line with estimates.
As part of its efforts to grow business, Fox in February agreed to form a sports-streaming joint venture with Walt Disney and Warner Bros Discovery.
The venture is expected to have 5 million subscribers in the first five years, Fox Corp CEO Lachlan Murdoch has said. REUTERS
