Dish Network loses subs, misses expectations

Dish Network saw its 2015 profit fall, missing Wall Street expectations, and lost 81,000 pay TV subscribers during the year.

The satellite and Net TV provider reported net income for 2015 of $747 million, down from $945 million in 2014 and short of analysts' expectations of $871.6 million, according to SQ Global Market Intelligence.

Dish Network shares (DISH) were down 3% Thursday to $44.66.

Diluted earnings per share were $1.61 in 2015, compared with $2.04 in 2014, below the $2 per share analysts expected.

Revenue of $15.1 billion rose 3.4%, surpassing 2015 expectations of $15 billion. Dish reported a loss of $125.3 million in the fourth quarter, after a profit of $410 million in the same period last year. During the quarter, Dish paid $516 million to the Federal Communications Commission to make up for its spectrum auction shortfall.

Dish ended the year with 13,897,000 subscribers, down from from 13,978,000 in 2014. During the year, Dish added nearly 2.8 million new subscribers, compared to 2.6 million in 2014.

New subscribers to Sling TV, the $20-monthly, Net-delivered TV service that Dish began operating in February 2015, helped offset higher customer churn rate for the year, the company said.

The average subscriber's monthly bill rose to $86.79, compared to $83.77 in 2014, as the cost of programming and equipment rental that Dish charged rose.

Evercore ISI Group analyst Vijay Jayant estimated that Dish lost 65,000 satellite video customers during the fourth quarter of 2015, while gaining 53,000 Sling TV customers. His firm rated Dish shares a Buy with a price target of $85 in a note to investors Thursday after the company released its financials.

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