Shares in AMC Networks, which have declined by more than 50% in 2024 to date, gained 3% Friday after the company posted third-quarter results ahead of Wall Street analysts’ expectations.Revenue slumped 6% in the quarter ended September 30 compared with the year-earlier period, coming in at $599.6 million. Adjusted earnings per share totaled 91 cents, down from $1.85.Despite the downturn, the numbers were significantly above analysts’ consensus on the top and bottom line. Investors boosted shares to $8.63, their highest level in weeks, on a break-even day overall for the Nasdaq.Streaming subscriber gains provided a highlight, with a 5% upswing leaving the company with a total of 11.8 million across the portfolio of targeted services like AcornTV, Shudder and AMC+. Streaming revenue, accordingly, rose 5% to $152 million. Despite the addition of 700,000 streaming subscribers from the year-ago quarter, overall subscription revenue slumped 5% due to linear declines.Affiliate and advertising revenue both declined by double digits, reflecting ongoing struggles with pay-TV subscriber losses due to cord-cutting. The affiliate line was down 13% to $164 million, while advertising fell 10% to $133 million. The company’s earnings release blamed the ad slump on linear ratings declines and “a challenging ad market,” calling out digital and advanced advertising revenue growth as offsetting positives.“As we manage this business within a complex and changing environment, we remain focused on our key strategic pillars – programming, partnerships and profitability,” CEO Kristin Dolan said in the earnings release. “During the quarter, we made significant advancements across all three areas.”Dolan also noted the company has generated $293 million of free cash flow thus far in 2024. She added that AMC Networks execs are “well on our way to delivering our stated goal of approximately half a billion dollars in cumulative free cash over two years.”
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