Comcast
Q2 2026 (reported July 23, 2026) — revenue $29.9B (-1.2% reported, +4.7% pro forma excluding Versant), adjusted EBITDA $8.9B (-13.4%) as broadband pricing resets and first-year NBA rights costs hit, and free cash flow $4.6B. Domestic broadband lost 167K customers (vs 201K a year earlier) to 28.5M after the company skipped a rate increase, and broadband ARPU fell 3.8%. Wireless added a record 448K lines to 10.2M. The Versant spin (completed January 2, 2026) took the cable networks (USA, CNBC, MS NOW, E!, Syfy, Golf Channel), while NBC, Bravo, Peacock (48M paid subscribers, first quarterly profit) and the theme parks stayed. Around the start of July management announced a second tax-free spin-off, of NBCUniversal and Sky, targeted to close in about a year and leaving a connectivity company (Xfinity broadband, wireless, business services). AI matters operationally and as a bandwidth-demand story, not as revenue. Management says AI queries help drive upstream traffic growth.
Scenarios
Wireless convergence is working — a record 448K line adds took the base to 10.2M, only 7% of addressable lines in the footprint, and broadband losses narrowed by 34K YoY after the pricing reset. AI workloads raise bandwidth demand (management says upstream traffic grew 2.5x as fast as downstream, citing AI queries), which favors wired networks, and DOCSIS 4.0 multi-gigabit upgrades widen the gap with fixed wireless. Separating NBCUniversal and Sky, with Peacock now profitable at 48M subscribers, lets each side be valued on its own economics.
Broadband, the profit core of the post-spin company, is still shrinking (167K lost in Q2 2026) and is being repriced lower, with ARPU down 3.8% and adjusted EBITDA down 13.4%. Fiber overbuilders and fixed wireless keep taking share, and wireless runs on MVNOs (residential on Verizon, business on T-Mobile) rather than an owned national network. After the NBCUniversal/Sky spin the remaining company is a capital-intensive connectivity utility with no AI revenue line, and buybacks are paused during the separation.
Key Factors to Watch
- ●Q2 2026 (Jul 23) — broadband net loss 167K to 28.5M, ARPU -3.8% after skipping a rate increase; adjusted EBITDA -13.4%
- ●Record 448K wireless line adds to 10.2M (7% penetration of footprint lines); business MVNO on T-Mobile just went live
- ●Tax-free spin-off of NBCUniversal and Sky announced around early July 2026, ~1 year to complete; buybacks paused Jun 29
- ●Peacock at 48M paid subscribers with first quarterly profit ($189M EBITDA) — goes with NBCUniversal, not Versant
- ●AI is operational and a bandwidth-demand story, not revenue; CTS VideoAI workflow apps (IBC, Sep 2026) are a minor B2B line
Score History
| Date | Score | Direction | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-10-10 | 5.6 | Neutral | Text refresh to Q2 2026 (Jul 23), dims unchanged. Fixed factual errors — Versant took the cable networks (USA, CNBC, MS NOW, E!, Syfy), not NBC or Bravo; Peacock stays with NBCUniversal; the '$123.7B (2025)' revenue figure matched FY2024; the T-Mobile MVNO is business-only. Added the NBCU+Sky spin-off plan (announced before Aug 22 and structural, not AI, so not scored) and the CTS VideoAI apps at IBC Sep 2026 (immaterial). |
| 2026-03-08 | 5.6 | Neutral | Score 6.2→5.6 (reweight + are 4→3). are corrected: cable/media conglomerate; AI enhances but minimal direct AI revenue |
| 2026-03-08 | 6.2 | Positive | Initial assessment from batch 6 research |
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Last researched: 2026-10-10
This is research and analysis, not financial advice. Scores reflect AI impact potential, not investment recommendations.