Weak Films Hurt Profit at Viacom

Viacom Inc., owner of MTV, VH1 and Nickelodeon, reported lower fourth-quarter earnings Wednesday mainly because of charges and weak results at its Paramount movie studio.

Viacom reported earnings as a separate company for the first time since its split with CBS Corp. at the beginning of the year. It calculated its results as if it had been a separate entity.

On that basis, Viacom earned $220 million, or 29 cents a share, down from $378 million, or 45 cents, a year earlier.

Excluding one-time charges and a tax benefit, earnings came in at $282 million, or 37 cents a share, down from $355 million, or 42 cents, a year earlier.

Revenue rose 9% to $2.72 billion from $2.5 billion.

The company’s entertainment division, largely the Paramount studio, swung to a loss of $94 million on a 5% decline in revenue, which included a 42% plunge in worldwide theatrical revenue.

The quarter’s movie slate, which included “Yours, Mine and Ours” and “Elizabethtown,” didn’t do as well as the year-earlier slate, which had “Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events” and “The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie.”

Paramount recorded $54 million in charges related to severance and the write-down of abandoned projects as well as write-downs related to movies released in the first quarter.

Earnings from cable networks rose 15% on a 16% increase in revenue. The company reported advertising gains at its Nickelodeon, Spike and VH1 channels.

Viacom said it expected revenue and operating income to increase in the double-digit percentage range in 2006 and earnings per share of $1.95 to $2, compared with $1.70 in 2005, excluding some items.

The earnings report was released after markets closed. Viacom’s Class B shares fell 52 cents to $41.90 in regular trading and rose 10 cents after hours.