Warner Music Group Corp. posted an unexpected loss in its fiscal fourth quarter as severance costs weighed on results despite a strong slate of music releases from artists including Jay-Z and Madonna.
The loss of $18 million, or 12 cents a share, contrasted with profit of $6 million, or 4 cents, a year earlier. The quarter included $14 million in severance costs as the company shifted resources from promoting CDs to generating revenue from digital music.
Revenue rose nearly 1%, to $861 million, the first revenue gain since the fourth quarter of 2008.
Analysts on average expected Warner Music to post a profit of 5 cents a share on revenue of $820.3 million, according to Thomson Reuters.
Warner Music shares closed down 86 cents, or 12.2%, at $6.20 after falling as low as $4.44 earlier in the day.
TIVO INC.
Subscriber drain leads to loss
TiVo Inc., the pioneer of digital video recorders, reported a $6.67-million third-quarter loss Tuesday as subscribers continued to drop the service.
The loss of 6 cents a share compares with profit of $100.6 million, or 98 cents, a year ago from an award in patent litigation, Alviso, Calif.-based TiVo said. Sales slid 12% to $56.9 million, topping the $53.1-million average estimate of analysts in a Bloomberg survey.
The company is trying to reverse subscriber losses by making its service more widely available on pay-TV systems, including Comcast Corp. TiVo is suing Dish Network Corp., EchoStar Corp., AT&T Inc. and Verizon Communications Inc. for allegedly violating its DVR patents. Total subscribers fell 21% to 2.74 million in the period ended Oct. 31.
TiVo shares rose 2 cents to $10.99 in extended trading. The shares added 24 cents to $10.97 at the close of regular trading and have gained 53% this year.
For the fourth quarter, TiVo projects service and technology revenue of $43 million to $45 million and a net loss of $13 million to $15 million.
TiVo said Tuesday that it would supply Mountain View, Calif.-based Google Inc. with viewer data for the Internet company's TV ad sales unit. Terms weren't disclosed.
The company also said it will develop a TV and broadband interface for Virgin Media Inc.'s new high-definition set-top boxes. The accord will give TiVo access to 4 million subscribers and recurring subscription fees, Chief Executive Tom Rogers said. Terms weren't disclosed.
BARNES & NOBLE BORDERS GROUP
