Earnings: DISH Profits Decline On Investment Charges, As Subs Drop; Revs Up 7.4 Percent
This story was written by David Kaplan.
Struggling satellite operator DISH Network reported that Q3 net income was $92 million ($0.20 per share), down 54 percent from last year's $200 million ($0.45 per share). The company attributed the plunge to impairment charges related to its investments. Aside from trouble with its securities portfolio, the Englewood, CO-based company said it lost roughly 10,000 subscribers, ending the quarter with 13.78 million subs. On the plus side, revenues were up 7.4 percent to $2.9 million from Q307's $2.7 million.
-- ARPU rose 5.8 percent to $69.82.
-- SAC was up 13.8 percent to $735.
-- Churn rate was 2.02 percent, compared to 1.94 percent in Q307. DISH is telling investors not to expect a reduction in its churn rateat least not without significantly increasing spending on customer retention incentives, "which would have a negative effect on our earnings and free cash flow."
Release | Financials | Webcast (12:00 PM EDT)
By David Kaplan