Comcast beats expectations as higher prices offset slowing broadband growth

Comcast beat analyst estimates on Thursday when it reported its second quarter results, as higher pricing helped offset a continued slowdown in its broadband business.

The company also said the number of subscribers for its streaming service Peacock nearly doubled to 24 million compared to the prior-year period, with revenue up 85% to $820 million. Still, losses from the streaming platform continued to weigh on NBCUniversal’s media business.

Here’s how Comcast performed, compared with estimates from analysts surveyed by Refinitiv:

• Earnings per share: $1.13 adjusted vs. $0.97 estimated

• Revenue: $30.51 billion vs. $30.13 billion estimated

For the quarter ended June 30, Comcast reported earnings of $4.25 billion, or $1.02 per share, compared with $3.4 billion, or 76 cents per share, a year earlier. Adjusting for one-time items, Comcast posted $1.13 per share for the most recent period.

This marked Comcast’s biggest earnings beat in the last two years.

Earlier this year Comcast changed how it reported its segments. The company now groups its Xfinity-branded broadband, cable TV and wireless services with its U.K.-based Sky. Total revenue for the segment was $20.36 billion, relatively flat compared with the same period last year.

The company lost 19,000 domestic broadband subscribers during the period. It had more than 32.3 million total broadband customers at the end of the quarter.

Last quarter, Comcast executives warned that adding broadband customers would remain a challenge in the near term, and would instead focus on average revenue per user to grow revenue for the business. Higher average rates helped to offset second quarter subscriber losses, leading to revenue growth of 4.4%.

Comcast and its peers have experienced slowing growth in the broadband segment following quarters of robust gains during the early days of the Covid pandemic. Executives have pointed to heightened competition from telecom and wireless providers, as well as a lower rate of Americans moving between…