Fox Corp. Sees Q1 Profit Hike on World Cup, Political Ads

Fox Corporation said profit in its fiscal first quarter was bolstered by advertising revenue tied to its multi-week telecast of the FIFA World Cup as well as increases in political ads and in the number of subscribers to its TV networks — dynamics that many traditional media corporations are hard-pressed to duplicate in the streaming era.

The owner of Fox News Channel, the Fox broadcast network and the Tubi streaming service said revenue totaled $4.57 billion, an increase of 22% of $833 million, buoyed by a 9% increase in fees from carriers of its programming and a 47% hike in advertising tied largely to the World Cup telecasts.

Net income attributable to Fox shareholders came to $943 million , or $2.20 per share, compared with $599 million, or $1.32 per share in the year-earlier period.

“We commenced the year with the stellar performance of the FIFA Men’s World Cup, the kickoff of the college football and NFL seasons, and an active election cycle at the national and local levels. These events supported strong contributions from across the company, reflecting the focused strategy we are executing and the strength of our content and brands,” said Lachlan Murdoch, Fox’s CEO, said in a statement. “These record results coupled with the strong momentum we are continuing to see across our business gives us confidence in delivering value for shareholders in a thoughtful and disciplined manner.”

Revenue at the company’s cable networks rose 8%, or $141 million, to $1.8 billion. Fox cited a 10% increase in distribution fees and an 8% uptick in advertising.

Revenue at the company’s traditional TV operations rose 32%, or $663 million, to $2.71 billion, with Fox citing a 60% increase in advertising and a 4% uptick in distribution fees.