Comcast to Report Q1 Earnings: What's in Store for the Stock?

Comcast CMCSA is scheduled to report its first-quarter 2025 results on April 24.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for first-quarter earnings is pegged at 98 cents per share, indicating a downward revision by 3 cents over the past 30 days. The figure indicates a 5.77% decrease from the year-ago quarter’s reported figure.

The consensus mark for revenues is pegged at $29.68 billion, indicating a 1.25% decline from the year-ago quarter’s reported figure.

CMCSA’s earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters, delivering an average surprise of 7.47%.

Comcast Corporation Price and EPS Surprise

Comcast Corporation price-eps-surprise | Comcast Corporation Quote

See the Zacks Earnings Calendar to stay ahead of market-making news.

Let us see how things are shaping up for the upcoming announcement.

Factors to Consider

Comcast is expected to have incurred over $100 million in pre-launch and marketing expenses for Epic Universe during the first quarter of 2025. These investments were essential for setting up the park’s operations and building awareness ahead of its opening in May this year. However, as these costs did not contribute to revenues in the quarter under review, they are likely to have pressured the company’s bottom line in the first quarter.

The company continued ramping up its mobile strategy in the first quarter, integrating Xfinity Mobile with higher-tier broadband plans and offering aggressive promotions. This included subsidized handsets and bundled pricing to drive convergence. While this approach supports long-term customer retention, the near-term effect of these investments is likely to have resulted in additional operating expenses, negatively impacting the bottom line in the quarter under review.

Comcast Business is expected to have been a steady contributor in the first quarter, driven by improved service adoption across small and medium-sized businesses. The completed acquisition of Nitel in the quarter to be reported expanded Comcast’s managed services capabilities and reach into enterprise markets. These developments are expected to have boosted the top line during the quarter under review.

The company upgraded speeds for more than 20 million Xfinity Internet customers at no extra cost in the first quarter. This was accompanied by the rollout of simpler pricing packages and convergence bundles with mobile. While these efforts focused on improving customer experience and retention, they are expected to have supported the top line by sustaining broadband and convergence revenue growth.

Despite losing 139,000 broadband subscribers in the fourth quarter of 2024, Comcast entered the first quarter of 2025 with higher ARPU. The company focused on retaining high-value customers while leveraging mobile bundles and service quality to drive value. Although subscriber volumes may have remained under pressure in the quarter under review, these strategies are likely to have helped maintain a stable revenue growth in the first quarter despite competition from fiber and fixed wireless operators.

What Our Model Says

Per the Zacks model, the combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the odds of an earnings beat, which is not exactly the case here.

Comcast currently has an Earnings ESP of -1.56% and a Zacks Rank #3. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they are reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

Stocks to Consider

Here are some companies worth considering, as our model shows that these have the right combination of elements to beat on earnings in their upcoming releases:

Caesars Entertainment CZR currently has an Earnings ESP of +27.90% and a Zacks Rank #3. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

CZR shares have lost 25.2% in the year-to-date (YTD) period. It is set to report its first-quarter 2025 results on April 29.

MGM Resorts International MGM currently has an Earnings ESP of +7.08% and a Zacks Rank #3.

MGM shares have declined 16.6% YTD. It is slated to report its first-quarter 2025 results on April 30.

Roblox RBLX has an Earnings ESP of +7.01% and a Zacks Rank #2 at present.

RBLX shares have gained 3.5% YTD. Roblox is scheduled to report its first-quarter 2025 results on May 1.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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