Comcast earnings better than forecast

Consumers may be cutting the cord with cable TV providers, but Comcast said Wednesday its high-speed internet and film franchises are providing new sources of growth.

The media and cable giant reported quarterly earnings on Wednesday that beat analyst expectations, and revenue that topped estimates, as the company grew its customer base in high-speed internet and business services, offsetting lost customers in video services.

It also announced plans to increase its dividend by 21 percent and to repurchase at least $5 billion in stock in 2018.

Comcast reported fourth-quarter earnings of $14.99 billion, or $3.17 per share. Earnings, adjusted for pretax gains, were 49 cents per share.

The results beat Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of 17 analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of 47 cents per share.

The cable provider posted revenue of $21.92 billion in the period, also topping Street forecasts. Fifteen analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $21.8 billion.

Comcast shares climbed Wednesday by 55 cents per share, or 1.3 percent, to close at $42.99. Comcast shares have climbed 6 percent since the beginning of the year, matching the overall gains in the Standard & Poor’s 500. Comcast’s stock has climbed 16 percent in the last 12 months.