Comcast reported second-quarter revenues up 23.6 percent to USD 26.9 billion, driven by its acquisition of European pay-TV provider Sky. Adjusted EBITDA rose 17.5 percent to USD 8.7 billion, while net profit dipped 2.8 percent to EUR 3.1 billion. Adjusted EPS was still up 13 percent to USD 0.78.
Capital expenditure increased 0.6 percent to USD 2.3 billion, led by growth at NBCUniversal as cable spending declined. Free cash flow was USD 4.2 billion for the quarter, little changed from a year earlier, and Comcast maintained its quarterly dividend at USD 0.21 per share.
Customer growth was led by Sky, which added 304,000 subscribers in the quarter, nearly triple the year-earlier figure. It ended June with just over 24 million customers. Excluding currency effects, Sky's revenue increased 2.4 percent, primarily driven by higher content and direct-to-consumer revenue, partially offset by lower advertising revenue. Adjusted EBITDA was up 19.9 percent on a constant currency basis.
This contrasted with Comcast's cable operations in the US, where the company lost another 224,000 TV subscribers. Broadband growth remained strong in the US, with 209,000 net additions, increasing further the share of single-play customers. Xfinity Mobile customers increased by 181,000 in the three months to take the total base over 1.5 million.
