Paramount Global (NASDAQ:PARA) shares edged lower before US markets opened on Friday as the media and entertainment conglomerate reported mixed earnings for the second quarter.
Revenue for the quarter was up 1% year-over-year at $6.85 billion, in line with Wall Street estimates.
Earnings per share (EPS) of $0.46 were down from $0.54 in the year-ago quarter but beat the consensus range of $0.37 to $0.44.
Although direct-to-consumer revenue was up 15% to $2.1 billion, the company’s streaming service lost 1.3 million subscribers, ending the quarter with 77.7 million.
Traditional TV revenue was down about 6% to $4 billion, reflecting ongoing challenges in ad sales and cable fees.
The $8 billion merger between Paramount Global and Skydance Media is set to close on August 7, creating a new entity called Paramount Skydance Corporation.
“Despite an increasingly challenging environment, the talented co-CEOs and teams across the company have continued to strengthen and grow the business,” Paramount non-executive chair Shari Redstone said in a statement.
“I am proud that when the Skydance transactions close, we will be turning over a healthy business with a strong foundation for long-term growth and value creation. I will be forever grateful to the people of the company and the shareholders who have supported us.”
Shares of Paramount traded down 1.1% at $12.43 shortly before markets opened on Friday.