Earnings Preview: Dish Network Corp. 4Q earnings, expect increase in subscribers

Earnings Preview: Dish Network Corp.

PHILADELPHIA — Dish Network Corp., the nation’s second largest satellite TV operator, reports fourth-quarter earnings before the market opens on Monday.

WHAT TO WATCH FOR: The Englewood, Colo. company is expected to add subscibers in the fourth quarter — the third quarter in a row — partly as a result of an aggressive advertising campaign that compares its cheaper plans to those of fellow satellite TV operator DirecTV Inc.

DirecTV is suing Dish for false advertising over one such commercial, claiming Dish is not using similar TV packages in their comparisons.

WHY IT MATTERS: Dish’s market share gain is important in a competitive and mature market where nearly nine out of 10 TV-viewing households already subscribe to either cable, satellite TV or video services from a phone company.

WHAT’S EXPECTED: Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expect Dish to earn 32 cents per share in the fourth quarter and post revenue of $2.94 billion.

LAST YEAR’S QUARTER: Dish earned $217 million, or 48 cents per share, on revenue of $2.92 billion. That was up from $175 million, or 39 cents per share, on revenue of $2.89 billion in the prior year.