Comcast reported its fourth-quarter 2021 earnings, beating Wall Street’s expectations on both revenue and earnings. NBCUniversal revenue was US$9.3 billion, up 25.6% from Q4 2020, and studio sales were up more than 36%. The company also disclosed that its streaming service Peacock now has over 9 million paid subscribers.
In detail, the corporation’s media revenue increased 8.4% to $5.8 billion, with advertising sales up 6% and distribution revenue rising 11.6%. The segment saw a $559 million loss related to Peacock, which Comcast says hit 24.5 million monthly active accounts (MAAs) in the period. For the full year, Peacock lost $1.7 billion on an adjusted basis.
According to the company, the increase in operating expenses was primarily driven by higher programming and production expenses, reflecting higher programming costs at Peacock, higher sports programming costs compared to the prior year period when there was a lower number of sporting events resulting from the delayed start of some professional sports seasons due to Covid-19, and higher entertainment programming costs.
"Comcast’s strong operating and financial performance in 2021 was underscored by our highest full-year revenue, adjusted EBITDA, adjusted EPS, and free cash flow on record. We continue to execute extraordinarily well, strengthening our leadership position in connectivity, aggregation, and streaming, while working to have a lasting impact on our communities through our commitment to DE&I and digital equity. Looking ahead, we remain focused on our many exciting organic growth opportunities across all of our businesses. Our top priority is increasing the capacity of our network in the United States and further improving our world-class broadband experience,” said Brian L. Roberts, Chairman and CEO of Comcast Corporation.
“We are producing more of the premium content that our viewers love and continue to provide them with multiple ways to access it, including on Peacock while ramping construction of Epic Universe and welcoming even more guests to our theme parks. And, significantly, we are expanding the reach of our proprietary global technology platform and addressable customer base, starting with Sky Glass and XClass TV. Our confidence in the future is reflected in today’s announcement that we are increasing the dividend for the 14th consecutive year," Roberts added.
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