Fox First Quarter Results Beat Wall Street's View on World Cup, Political Advertising Boost

11:26 AM EST, 11/02/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Fox (FOX, FOXA) reported better-than-expected fiscal first-quarter results Monday as advertising revenue surged, driven by strength from the FIFA Men's World Cup and political campaigning. Revenue increased 22% to $4.57 billion, compared with the FactSet-polled consensus of $4.32 billion. Adjusted per-share earnings rose to $2.54 from $1.51 a year earlier, exceeding Street's estimate of $2.05. Fox's class A and B shares were slightly higher in Monday trading but both are down about 13% for the year. "Fox has had an outstanding start to fiscal 2027 with first-quarter records for revenue and adjusted (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) underpinned by robust growth in both advertising and distribution revenue," Chief Executive Lachlan Murdoch said in a statement. Distribution revenue rose 9% to $2.08 billion, boosted by growth in both the cable network programming and television segments, the company said. Advertising revenue surged 47% to $2.08 billion, driven by the broadcast of the FIFA Men's World Cup, higher political advertising and continued digital growth led by Tubi, Fox said. "We commenced the year with the stellar performance of the FIFA Men's World Cup, the kickoff of the college football and NFL seasons, and an active election cycle at the national and local levels," Murdoch said. "These events supported strong contributions from across the company, reflecting the focused strategy we are executing and the strength of our content and brands." By segment, television revenue soared 32% year-over-year to $2.71 billion, and cable network programming revenue jumped 8% to $1.80 billion. BofA Securities raised its fiscal first-quarter revenue expectations last month, citing continued benefit from the World Cup. "The resounding success of the World Cup on Fox drove a significant (fiscal fourth quarter) beat and positions the company for a strong (fiscal first quarter) as well," the company said in a note in October. Comcast's (CMCSA) reported better-than-expected third-quarter results in October even as the media giant continued to lose domestic broadband subscribers. Sinclair (SBGI) and Nexstar Media (NXST) third-quarter earnings are slated for Wednesday and Thursday, respectively. Price: 56.08, Change: -0.12, Percent Change: -0.21