Windstream Holdings Inc. of Little Rock on Thursday reported a 74 percent decline in third-quarter earnings as the telecommunications firm continued to work toward spinning off assets into a separate, publicly traded company.
Windstream said third-quarter net income was $8 million, down 74 percent from $30.6 million in the same quarter last year. Earnings per share fell to 1 cent from 5 cents in the third quarter of 2013, missing analysts’ estimates.
Quarterly revenue was $1.46 billion, down 3 percent from $1.50 billion.
The decline came amid a 2 percent rise in costs and expenses, which include merger and integration costs.
During the quarter, the company announced it had purchased Business Only Broadband of Chicago, a fixed wireless enterprise services provider with operations in Chicago, New York City, northern New Jersey and Milwaukee.
Looking ahead, the company said it expects total revenue for the year to come in at the low end of its previously stated range between a 1 percent increase and a 2.5 percent decline compared to fiscal 2013.
Still, the company noted growth in its enterprise and small-business revenue and “solid” performance in its consumer channel.
“Enterprise and small-business revenues grew sequentially and year-over-year, driven by solid enterprise sales,” CEO Jeff Gardner said in a news release. “Our consumer channel also delivered another strong quarter. Windstream’s cash flow generation remains strong, and we expect to achieve our financial targets for 2014.”
The company said it continues to work toward spinning off some of its assets into a separate, publicly traded real estate investment trust, a move it announced earlier this year.
Windstream said it has filed preliminary documents with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to register the REIT’s equity securities. The firm is also working with state public utility commissions to obtain necessary approval. It expects the deal to close in the first quarter of next year.
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