Viacom (NYSE:VIA-B) reported their quarterly results Friday, and it was good news, as both revenue and profits exceeded Wall Street expectations.
Revenue in the first quarter grew by 15 percent to come in at $3.1 billion, while analysts looked for $3 billion, and profits surged by 33 percent to finish the quarter at $270 million. That's up from profits of $203 million a year ago.
Guidance was also encouraging, as CEO Philippe Dauman said, "we continue to expect our (second quarter) domestic advertising sales growth to be comparable to the first quarter."
The company also said the projections of growth from 2008 through 2010 remain on track, with earnings per share expected to continue to grow at a low double-digit rate.
Profit for the quarter was primarily led by MTV Networks advertising revenue, as well as sales of the popular "Rock Band" video game.
The company reiterated that advertising sales continue strong in the U.S., and worries by some over a slowdown because of credit-related problems are unfounded at this time.
"The trends seem very healthy despite concerns of an economic slowdown," Standard & Poor's analyst Tuna Amobi said about Viacom's advertising performance.
Ad revenue in the U.S. rose by 7 percent for the quarter, while global ad revenue was even stronger, growing by 8 percent to reach $1.05 billion.
Film Revenue
Revenue from their film studios grew at a healthy pace for the quarter also, as it ended the quarter at $1.15 billon; a 12 percent increase.
Even so, the worldwide box office revenue dropped by 7 percent, based on lower ticket results, undermining DVD sales from "Beowulf" and "Bee Movie." Most the losses were attributed to movie production costs.
The film unit did suffer a loss of $63 million, although it was able to narrow that from their former loss of $108 million.
Viacom has expectations of a big year in film, as they start with the release of "Iron Man" this week through Paramount Studio. Later on they'll have an almost guaranteed hit with "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," and then a potential hit with "Kung Fu Panda."
Comment Preview