Madison Square Garden Q1 Profit Surges On Sale Of TV Channel

(RTTNews) - The Madison Square Garden Co. (MSG), Operator of the New York Knicks team, Friday reported a rise in first-quarter profit, helped by a huge gain from sale of its tv channel Fuse Network

Net profit increased to $108.07 million or $1.38 per share, from $23.87 million or $0.31 per share last year. The latest quarter results included a $162.4 million pre-tax gain from the sale of Fuse.

On average, analysts polled by Thomson-Reuters estimated earnings to be $0.32. Analysts' estimates typically exclude one-time items.

The company's operating income rose to $197.35 million from $39.86 million a year earlier. Excluding the gain on sale of fuse and other items, it recorded an operating income of $76.15 million.

Revenues grew to $241.74 million from $215.59 million as a rise in revenues from entertainment and sports segments more than offset the decline in media revenues. Analysts projected revenues to be $224.22 million.