Investing.com -- Fox Corporation reported second-quarter earnings that surpassed analyst expectations, driven by robust advertising revenue and growth in affiliate fees. The company's stock jumped 4% following the announcement.
Fox posted adjusted earnings per share of $0.96, beating the analyst consensus of $0.67 by $0.29. Revenue for the quarter came in at $5.08 billion, surpassing estimates of $4.84 billion and marking a 20% YoY increase.
The company's strong performance was primarily fueled by a 21% rise in advertising revenue, which reached $2.42 billion. This growth was attributed to higher political advertising revenues, improved MLB postseason ratings, increased NFL pricing, and continued digital growth led by the Tubi AVOD service. Affiliate fee revenue also saw a 6% increase, driven by 9% growth in the Television segment and 4% growth in Cable Network Programming.
Fox's quarterly Adjusted EBITDA surged 123% YoY to $781 million, reflecting the company's ability to capitalize on a strong fall sports schedule and a record-breaking presidential election news cycle.
Executive Chair and CEO Lachlan Murdoch commented on the results, stating, "Whether measured in terms of engagement, monetization or profitability, our focused strategy of live news and sports programming, coupled with our growing digital initiatives, continues to deliver."
The company's Television segment reported a significant turnaround, with segment EBITDA of $205 million compared to a loss of $138 million in the same quarter last year. This improvement was driven by higher political advertising revenues and increased affiliate fees.
Fox also declared a dividend of $0.27 per Class A and Class B share, payable on March 26, 2025. The company continued its share repurchase program, buying back approximately $250 million of its Class A common stock during the quarter.