DISH Network Corp. DISH declared mixed financial results in the first quarter of 2017 wherein the bottom line surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate while the top line lagged the same.
Quarterly net income came in at $375.7 million or 76 cents per share compared with a net income of $399.9 million or 86 cents in the year-ago quarter. First-quarter earnings per share of 76 cents outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 67 cents.
Total revenue in the reported quarter was approximately $3,680.4 million, down 3.8% year over year and lagging the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3,749 million.
In the first quarter of 2017, segment-wise, subscriber-related revenues grossed $3,644.1 million, down 3.5% year over year. Equipment sales & other revenues totaled $36.3 million, down 30.2% year over year.
In the reported quarter, operating expenses were a little over $3,073 million, down 5.3% year over year. Operating income was $2,211.1 million compared with $607.3 million, up 4.1% year over year. EBITDA in the first quarter of 2017 was $802.3 million compared with $865.9 million in the prior-year quarter.
As of Mar 31, 2017, DISH Network had approximately 13.528 million pay-TV subscribers compared with 13.874 million at the end of 2016. The company lost a net 143,000 pay-TV subscribers in the reported quarter compared with a loss of 23,000 in the year-ago quarter.
Moreover, DISH Network lost 25,000 broadband subscribers in the reported quarter compared with a gain of 5,000 in the year-ago quarter. As of Mar 31, 2017, DISH Network had 555,000 broadband subscribers compared with 628,000 at the end of the prior-year quarter.
Pay-TV churn rate in the first quarter of 2017 was 1.69% compared with 1.63% in the year-ago quarter. Pay-TV ARPU (average revenue per user) was $86.55 compared with $87.94 in the year-ago quarter. Pay-TV average subscriber acquisition cost was $590 compared with $625 in the year-ago quarter.
In the first quarter of 2017, DISH Network generated $936.8 million of cash from operations compared with $928 million in the prior-year quarter. Free cash flow in the reported quarter was $539.3 million compared with $541.5 million in the year-ago quarter.
At the end of the first quarter of 2017, DISH Network had $6,802.9 million of cash and marketable securities and $18,147.3 million of outstanding debt on its balance sheet compared with $5,359.3 million and $16,478.9 million, respectively, at the end of 2016. The debt-to-capitalization ratio at the end of the reported quarter was 0.78 compared with 0.77 at 2016-end.
DISH Network Corporation Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise