Comcast Corp., the largest U.S. cable operator, on Wednesday posted a quarterly profit after a year-ago loss as an increased in high-speed Internet customers offset a loss in basic video subscribers.
Comcast, which in April abandoned a hostile bid to purchase Walt Disney Co., posted a second-quarter net profit of $262 million, or 12 cents a share, compared with a net loss of $22 million, or a penny a share, a year earlier.
Revenue for the quarter rose to $5.1 billion from $4.6 billion.
Analysts had expected a profit of 10 cents a share and revenue of $5 billion, according to Reuters Estimates.
The Philadelphia-based company said it lost about 96,000 basic video subscribers and added about 327,000 high-speed Internet subscribers.
College students in particular are likely to cut cable services during summer break, which starts in the second quarter.
Comcast has tried to allay investor fears that it had little confidence in its core cable business after its Disney bid.
The company also said its board of directors has authorized an additional $1 billion to repurchase its shares, which have fallen 15 percent since the day before it launched the Disney bid on Feb. 11.
