European Investor
22 Oct 2026, 15:33
Comcast Rises 3.7% as Peacock Turns Profitable and Wireless Growth Offsets Core Pressure
Comcast (NASDAQ: CMCSA) shares rose about 3.7% after the company reported third-quarter results showing continued pressure in its core connectivity business, but improving profitability at Peacock, strong wireless growth and solid free cash flow.
Revenue fell 6.1% year over year to $29.3 billion, largely reflecting portfolio changes. On a pro forma basis adjusting for the Versant separation and the sale of Sky Germany, revenue increased 0.5%. Adjusted EBITDA declined 5.8% to $9.1 billion, while pro forma adjusted EBITDA rose 0.8%.
Adjusted EPS slipped 4% to $1.07, although reported EPS increased 7.2% to $0.97. Free cash flow was $4.2 billion, down 14.8% from a year earlier, while operating cash flow totaled $7.9 billion.
Wireless remained a bright spot. Comcast added 368,000 domestic wireless lines in the quarter and 1.6 million over the last 12 months, bringing total wireless lines to 10.6 million. Nearly 45% of broadband customers are now on gigabit-plus tiers, while premium unlimited plans represented about 40% of postpaid phone connects.
Peacock delivered one of the strongest improvements in the quarter, generating $261 million of adjusted EBITDA versus a loss a year earlier, an improvement of $478 million. Revenue reached $1.8 billion and paid subscribers increased 17% to 48 million.
Content performance was also strong. Universal Studios surpassed $5 billion in global box-office revenue, while The Odyssey became Universal’s highest-grossing film ever with nearly $1.8 billion in worldwide box office. Studios EBITDA increased 18.6% to $402 million.
The 3.7% gain appears to reflect investor focus on Peacock’s profitability, continued wireless momentum and improving underlying results after adjusting for portfolio changes, despite weaker adjusted EPS, lower free cash flow and continued pressure in parts of the core connectivity business.
Comcast (NASDAQ: CMCSA) shares rose about 3.7% after the company reported third-quarter results showing continued pressure in its core connectivity business, but improving profitability at Peacock, strong wireless growth and solid free cash flow.
Revenue fell 6.1% year over year to $29.3 billion, largely reflecting portfolio changes. On a pro forma basis adjusting for the Versant separation and the sale of Sky Germany, revenue increased 0.5%. Adjusted EBITDA declined 5.8% to $9.1 billion, while pro forma adjusted EBITDA rose 0.8%.
Adjusted EPS slipped 4% to $1.07, although reported EPS increased 7.2% to $0.97. Free cash flow was $4.2 billion, down 14.8% from a year earlier, while operating cash flow totaled $7.9 billion.
Wireless remained a bright spot. Comcast added 368,000 domestic wireless lines in the quarter and 1.6 million over the last 12 months, bringing total wireless lines to 10.6 million. Nearly 45% of broadband customers are now on gigabit-plus tiers, while premium unlimited plans represented about 40% of postpaid phone connects.
Peacock delivered one of the strongest improvements in the quarter, generating $261 million of adjusted EBITDA versus a loss a year earlier, an improvement of $478 million. Revenue reached $1.8 billion and paid subscribers increased 17% to 48 million.
Content performance was also strong. Universal Studios surpassed $5 billion in global box-office revenue, while The Odyssey became Universal’s highest-grossing film ever with nearly $1.8 billion in worldwide box office. Studios EBITDA increased 18.6% to $402 million.
The 3.7% gain appears to reflect investor focus on Peacock’s profitability, continued wireless momentum and improving underlying results after adjusting for portfolio changes, despite weaker adjusted EPS, lower free cash flow and continued pressure in parts of the core connectivity business.
