Versant Media Group reported its first-quarter results as a standalone company after separating from Comcast's NBCUniversal. The company experienced a 1% decline in overall revenue to $1.69 billion, slightly above Wall Street's expectations of $1.62 billion.
However, linear distribution revenue from its pay TV networks, which include CNBC and the Golf Channel, fell approximately 7% to $1.01 billion due to subscriber losses, although this was partially mitigated by rate increases. Advertising revenue also decreased by 5% to $368 million, an improvement compared to a 12% decline in the previous year.
In contrast, revenue from content licensing surged 113.5% to $121 million, driven by the licensing of "Keeping Up With the Kardashians" to Disney's Hulu. Versant's platforms business, which encompasses Fandango and GolfNow, saw a 9.5% increase in revenue to $192 million.
Despite the challenges in the pay TV sector, CEO Mark Lazarus expressed confidence in the company's strategy to enhance its digital presence and audience engagement. Net income fell 22% to $286 million, or $1.99 per share, attributed to lower revenue and increased costs following the spinout from Comcast.
The company declared a quarterly cash dividend of 37.5 cents per share and announced a $100 million accelerated share repurchase agreement, indicating a commitment to returning capital to shareholders. As of March 31, Versant had repurchased nearly 2.7 million shares and had approximately $900 million remaining in its buyback authorization