'Mission Impossible: Fallout' Leads Viacom to Q4 Earnings, Revenue Beats

Viacom's logo on the iconography of a dollar bill

Viacom rode Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his IMF team to a better-than-expected fourth quarter in terms of both earnings per share and revenue.

The Paramount Pictures parent company unveiled its fourth-quarter and full fiscal year 2018 financials Friday morning, reporting 99 cents of earnings per share (EPS) on $3.485 in revenue. Wall Street had forecast EPS of 95 cents on $3.37 billion in revenue, according to a consensus estimate of 25 media analysts compiled by Yahoo Finance.

That all-in revenue figure was 5 percent better than Q4 2017 and the earnings per share is 29 percent higher. For the full fiscal year, revenues declined 2 percent, but EPS rose 9 percent. Without the benefit of glorious adjustments, that profit instead drops 43 percent.

Also Read: 'MTV's The Real World' Reboot to Premiere in 2019 on Facebook Watch

Paramount’s worldwide box office hauled in 3x what it did in the comparable quarter last year, thanks mostly to “Mission: Impossible – Fallout,” which to-date has grossed more than $800 million worldwide. John Krasinski’s very profitable “A Quiet Place” also contributed, as did “Book Club,” which was a cheap acquisition.

Paramount also pitched in on TV, delivering “Maniac” to Netflix in the quarter. In return, Viacom enjoyed higher licensing revenues.

Viacom’s media networks didn’t do as hot, but there were some linear-TV highlights, like Season 2 of “Jersey Shore: Family Vacation” on MTV. Millennials gobbled that up.

MTV has been making headlines lately with its push into live events. It’s also shooting for nostalgia, bringing back “MTV Spring Break,” sharing “The Real World” with Facebook Watch, reviving “The Hills,” and rebooting “Undressed.”

Also Read: MTV Is Bringing Back 'Spring Break' Next Year

“Our strong performance in the fourth quarter capped off a pivotal year for Viacom. We successfully turned around our core business, with dramatic improvements across our networks, at Paramount and in distribution,” Viacom President and CEO Bob Bakish said in a statement accompanying the financials. “We also took important steps to evolve Viacom for the future – investing in our portfolio of advanced marketing solutions, digital and experiential offerings and global studio production business. As we head into 2019, we are excited about the company’s evolution and expect to return to topline growth.”

Bakish and other Viacom executives will host a conference call at 8:30 a.m. ET to discuss the quarter and fiscal year in greater detail.

Shares of VIAB stock closed Thursday afternoon at $31.83, up 4 cents. The U.S. stock markets reopen at 9:30 a.m. ET today.

In pre-market trading, VIAB shares are currently trading up more than 5 percent.

9 Biggest Billion-Dollar Entertainment and Media Deals in 2017 (Photos)

While all eyes were on AT&T's $85 billion acquisition of Time Warner, announced in late 2016 but facing an antitrust lawsuit from the Justice Department, there were plenty of other megadeals in media, tech and entertainment that kept investment bankers busy in 2017.

Here are some of the biggest deals of the year:
Getty Images
Disney to acquire most of 21st Century Fox for $52.4 billion

In a massive deal that could change the entertainment industry even more than AT&T-Time Warner, Disney announced plans to acquire Fox's film and TV studios and much of its non-broadcast television business, including regional sports networks and cable networks such as FX, FXX and Nat Geo. Disney would also pick up Fox’s stake in the European pay-TV giant Sky — and be better positioned to win regulatory approval to complete the acquisition of the 61 percent of the company it does not already own.
Discovery Communications agrees to buy Scripps Networks Interactive for $11.9 billion

The merger of two cable powerhouses brings together channels including Discovery, Science, Food Network and HGTV – and could give the combined company a stronger position as pay-TV continues to migrate to the internet.
Discovery/Scripps
Sinclair Broadcast Group agrees to buy Tribune Media for $3.8 billion

This deal, if approved, would give conservative-leaning Sinclair control of 223 stations in 108 markets, including 39 of the top 50, covering 72 percent of households in the country. And it's only possible under rule changes implemented by new FCC Chairman Ajit Pai.
Sinclair/Tribune
Cineworld offers to buy Regal Cinemas for more than $3 billion

After a string of movie theater mergers last year, the sector has quieted down -- along with the box office. And while this isn’t yet a done deal -- or even an accepted offer -- British chain Cineworld made a late November bid of $23 a share for the U.S.’s No. 2 cinema chain.
Cineworld/Regal
Meredith Corp. acquires Time Inc. for $2.8 billion

The magazine megadeal is a sign of changing times in the publishing industry, with the owner of esteemed brands like Time, Fortune and Sports Illustrated selling to the parent of Better Homes and Gardens and Country Life – backed by $650 million from big-time conservative donors the Koch brothers.
Meredith/Time
Verizon acquires Straight Path Communications for $2.3 billion

Straight Path may not be a household name, but it was the subject of a bidding war between AT&T and Verizon. The company is one of the largest owners of millimeter wave spectrum, seen as key to the buildout of 5G networks, which should power much faster mobile internet -- better for video -- in the near future.
Verizon/Straight Path
Disney buys the rest of BAMTech for $1.6 billion

The Mouse House jumped into internet TV in a major way in 2017, announcing upcoming Disney and ESPN-branded streaming services and acquiring the rest of streaming tech company BAMTech to power those products.
Disney/BAMTech
Entercom buys CBS Radio for $1.5 billion

CBS Radio was intended to be spun off from its broadcast parent in an IPO, but instead it was scooped up by a competitor. The combined company, now the second largest radio business in the country, owns and operates 244 stations in 47 markets.
Entercom/CBS Radio
MGM buys the rest of Epix for $1 billion

The independent studio went all in on the pay-TV business, buying the rest of the premium cable network from Viacom and Lionsgate. And that's paid immediate dividends, as MGM's media networks division propelled it to a strong third quarter.
MGM/Epix

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Rewind 2017: Media and content consolidation continued this year

While all eyes were on AT&T's $85 billion acquisition of Time Warner, announced in late 2016 but facing an antitrust lawsuit from the Justice Department, there were plenty of other megadeals in media, tech and entertainment that kept investment bankers busy in 2017.

Here are some of the biggest deals of the year:

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