As it waits for regulatory approval of Charter’s acquisition, Time Warner Cable has announced its third quarter earnings. Defying analyst projections, total sales were up 3.6 percent for a total of $5.92 billion. Profit is at $1.62 a share.
However, the bigger news in TWC’s cable and internet divisions, which beat expectations on both fronts. Projections had Time Warner Cable adding roughly 150,000 Internet subscribers. Time Warner Cable added 232,000 new subscribers this quarter, which is the best third quarter stat since 2006.
The video division lost 7,000 net subscribers in the third quarter, which on its face doesn’t seem like a major win. However, in the year-ago quarter, the company lost 182,000 video subscribers, so it seems the company has slowed some of the wave of video subscribers leaving Time Warner Cable.
Operating income for the quarter is down to $1 billion, but that’s largely due to capital reinvestments in new cable boxes and new infrastructure for existing customers.
Read more about Time Warner Cable’s earnings here.