Comcast (CMCSA) earnings Q1 2026

Comcast topped Wall Street’s revenue and earnings estimates for the first quarter on Thursday, lifted by NBC’s sports slate in February and improving broadband customer losses. 

“It’s still early, but the initial results are encouraging. We’re starting to see signs that our efforts are working and we’re shifting the businesses in the right direction,” co-CEO Brian Roberts said on Thursday’s earnings call. In addition to refocusing its strategy, Comcast has changed up its leadership structure, including elevating Mike Cavanagh to co-CEO alongside Roberts. 

The company’s stock climbed more than 6% in morning trading.

Here’s how Comcast performed for the period compared with average analyst estimates, according to LSEG:

• Earnings per share: 79 cents adjusted vs. 73 cents expected
• Revenue: $31.46 billion vs. $30.43 billion expected 

The company said it lost 65,000 broadband customers compared with 183,000 losses in the same period last year. Heightened competition from wireless providers like Verizon and T-Mobile has led to quarterly customer losses for Comcast and its cable peers in recent years – which has weighed on these companies’ stocks in particular. 

In response, Comcast in the last year has shifted its strategy and introduced more competitive pricing packages in a bid to reduce the broadband losses. The company has also leaned on its mobile business for growth, which added 435,000 new lines during the quarter. In total, Comcast now has 9.7 million mobile customers. 

“The competitive environment remains intense,” Cavanagh said on Thursday’s call. “Fixed wireless continues to market aggressively across our footprint.” 

Cavanagh noted the latest mobile plans that were launched this week in an effort to attract more customers. Mobile customers must also subscribe to Comcast’s broadband service, too. 

The company also reported 322,000 cable TV customer losses – fewer than the 427,000 in the same period last year. 

Revenue for Comcast’s connectivity and platforms unit, which includes its Xfinity-branded broadband, cable TV and mobile businesses, decreased 2% to $17.32 billion. 

Comcast’s net income fell nearly 36% to $2.17 billion, or 60 cents per share, compared with $3.38 billion, or 89 cents a share, during the same period last year. Adjusting for one-time items including amortization and investments, Comcast reported earnings per share of 79 cents. 

Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization were down roughly 17% to $7.93 billion. 

Comcast’s overall revenue increased roughly 5% to $31.46 billion for the quarter. 

The company’s overall revenue got a boost from Comcast’s NBCUniversal, which aired a slate of sports – including the Super Bowl, Winter Olympics and NBA All-Star Weekend, during the quarter – that the company coined as “Legendary February.” 

The media business, which is made up of NBCUniversal, recorded a nearly 61% increase in revenue to $7.28 billion during the quarter. Excluding the Olympics and Super Bowl – which provided significant boosts to advertising sales – revenue for the unit was up about 13%.

Live sports remains the highest-rated programming on traditional TV and streaming, and beckon the most advertising dollars. The Super Bowl, in particular, breaks records annually when it comes to its pricey commercial spots. NBC received an average $8 million per 30-second ad, CNBC reported. 

Domestic advertising for the media unit was up 135% to $3.45 billion for the quarter. Excluding the Super Bowl and Winter Olympics, it rose 4.7% to $1.54 billion. 

NBC’s sports roster also helped lift streaming service Peacock during the quarter. Peacock subscribers increased 12% year over year to 46 million. Peacock nearly doubled revenue to $2.1 billion compared with the same period last year. The streamer recorded a quarterly loss of $432 million compared with a loss of $215 million in the prior year period. 

Adjusted EBITDA for the media segment decreased to a loss of $426 billion due to higher operating expenses related to the costs associated with the Winter Olympics and Super Bowl as well as the cost of the NBA rights. 

Following the subscriber additions and increased revenue, Peacock is set to approach profitability for the first time next quarter, Cavanagh said Thursday. 

Profitability has become the key marker of success for streaming services as subscriber growth has leveled out for the larger platforms such as Netflix and Disney. In response, companies have focused on revenue-driving strategies such as advertising and price hikes. 

Sports will continue to pay off for Comcast’s NBC in the second quarter with the NBA playoffs and upcoming 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup, CFO Jason Armstrong said on Thursday’s call. NBC’s Telemundo holds the Spanish language rights for the World Cup, which begins in June, and will be broadcast on both traditional TV and Peacock. The 2022 World Cup helped lift Peacock. 

The Olympics has been a “meaningful differentiator” for NBC, Cavanagh said Thursday, in particular for Peacock, which has seen an increase in viewership on the streaming service.

This also marked the first quarter since Comcast spun out Versant Media, the group of assets including cable TV networks such as CNBC and MS Now, as well as Fandango and other digital businesses. 

“We’re already seeing the benefits of a more focused portfolio,” Cavanagh said of the spinout on Thursday. “Our six major growth drivers now represent well over 60% of total company revenue, up from 50% when we introduced the framework three years ago. 

NBCUniversal is part of the overall content and experiences segment, which also includes the film studio and theme parks – each of which saw sales climb year over year. 

Revenue for the film studio was up 21% to $3.43 billion, while Universal theme parks revenue increased 24% to $2.33 billion. The theme parks were boosted by the opening of Epic Universe last May. 

Disclosure: Versant Media is the parent company of CNBC. Comcast was the parent company of CNBC through the fourth quarter of 2025.