Cablevision Posts Loss
By TSC Staff
2/23/2005 9:42 AM EST
URL: http://www.thestreet.com/stocks/media/10210106.html
Cablevision (CVC:NYSE) posted a fourth-quarter loss Wednesday as a writedown of its failed satellite broadcasting project weighed on results.
For its fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, the Bethpage, N.Y., provider of cable television service lost $306 million, or $1.08 a share, on a continuing operations basis. A year ago the company lost $197 million, or 69 cents a share.
Cablevision said fourth-quarter revenue rose 11% from a year ago to $1.36 billion, and adjusted operating cash flow rose 5% to $261.4 million.
Latest-quarter numbers were hit by a $355 million writedown of the company's Rainbow Direct Broadcast Service. Cablevision moved last month to bail out of that business after an internal fight that pitted Chairman Jim Dolan against much of the company's board. The company subsequently moved to sell the remnants of the business to a group led by Dolan.
Cablevision sank hundreds of millions of dollars into launching the service, also known as Voom. But outsiders doubted Voom had a chance for success, given the availability of high-definition programming elsewhere and the huge head start enjoyed by the dominant U.S. satellite TV services, DirecTV (DTV:NYSE) and EchoStar (DISH:Nasdaq) . EchoStar agreed in January to take Voom's satellite for $200 million.
Early Wednesday, Cablevision was flat at $28.05.
By TSC Staff
2/23/2005 9:42 AM EST
URL: http://www.thestreet.com/stocks/media/10210106.html
Cablevision (CVC:NYSE) posted a fourth-quarter loss Wednesday as a writedown of its failed satellite broadcasting project weighed on results.
For its fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, the Bethpage, N.Y., provider of cable television service lost $306 million, or $1.08 a share, on a continuing operations basis. A year ago the company lost $197 million, or 69 cents a share.
Cablevision said fourth-quarter revenue rose 11% from a year ago to $1.36 billion, and adjusted operating cash flow rose 5% to $261.4 million.
Latest-quarter numbers were hit by a $355 million writedown of the company's Rainbow Direct Broadcast Service. Cablevision moved last month to bail out of that business after an internal fight that pitted Chairman Jim Dolan against much of the company's board. The company subsequently moved to sell the remnants of the business to a group led by Dolan.
Cablevision sank hundreds of millions of dollars into launching the service, also known as Voom. But outsiders doubted Voom had a chance for success, given the availability of high-definition programming elsewhere and the huge head start enjoyed by the dominant U.S. satellite TV services, DirecTV (DTV:NYSE) and EchoStar (DISH:Nasdaq) . EchoStar agreed in January to take Voom's satellite for $200 million.
Early Wednesday, Cablevision was flat at $28.05.
