Charter Announces Fourth Quarter 2018 Results

STAMFORD, Conn., Jan. 31, 2019

Key highlights:

• During the fourth quarter, Charter completed its all-digital and DOCSIS 3.1 initiatives. As of December 31, 2018, virtually all of Charter's national footprint was all-digital and Charter's Spectrum Internet Gig service is now available throughout Charter's footprint.
• Fourth quarter total residential and SMB customer relationships increased 248,000, compared to 209,000 during the fourth quarter of 2017. During the year ended December 31, 2018, total residential and SMB customer relationships grew by 3.5% to 28.1 million, and total residential and SMB Internet customers grew by 1.3 million, or 5.3% to 25.3 million, with 329,000 residential and SMB Internet customer net additions in the fourth quarter of 2018.
• Fourth quarter revenues of $11.2 billion grew 5.9%, as compared to the prior year period, driven by residential revenue growth of 3.9%, commercial revenue growth of 4.5%, and advertising revenue growth of 34.1%.
• Fourth quarter Adjusted EBITDA¹ of $4.2 billion grew 4.6% year-over-year, and 7.6% when excluding fourth quarter mobile revenue and operating expenses.
• For the year ended December 31, 2018, revenues rose to $43.6 billion, 4.9% higher than in 2017. Adjusted EBITDA totaled $16.1 billion for the year ended December 31, 2018, an increase of 5.0% compared to the prior year. Excluding mobile revenue and operating expenses in 2018, Adjusted EBITDA grew by 6.5% year-over-year.
• Net income attributable to Charter shareholders totaled $296 million in the fourth quarter, compared to $9.6 billion during the same period last year. For the year ended December 31, 2018, net income attributable to Charter shareholders totaled $1.2 billion, compared to $9.9 billion in 2017. The year-over-year decrease in net income in the fourth quarter and for the year ended December 31, 2018 was primarily driven by a GAAP tax benefit from a reduction in the deferred tax liability as a result of Federal tax reform in 2017.
• Fourth quarter capital expenditures totaled $2.4 billion and included $28 million of all-digital costs and $106 million of mobile-related capital expenditures. For the year ended December 31, 2018, capital expenditures totaled $9.1 billion, or $8.9 billion excluding mobile-related capital expenditures.
• During the fourth quarter, Charter purchased approximately 4.3 million shares of Charter Class A common stock and Charter Communications Holdings, LLC ("Charter Holdings") common units for approximately $1.4 billion. For the year ended December 31, 2018, Charter purchased approximately 16.2 million shares of Charter Class A common stock and Charter Holdings common units for approximately $5.0 billion.

"We performed well in 2018, growing our Internet customer base by 1.3 million, cable revenue by 4.7%, and cable Adjusted EBITDA by 6.5% -- very strong operating and financial performance, particularly in the midst of what we believe is the largest cable integration ever," said Tom Rutledge, Chairman and CEO of Charter Communications. "In 2019, we expect the operating and cash flow performance of our cable business will further demonstrate the superiority of our network, the returns of our recent investments, and the long-term value creation driven by our consumer-focused operating strategy."