Fox Corp

FOX Corporation operates as a news, sports, and entertainment company, primarily within the U.S., structured into two reportable segments: Cable Network Programming and Television. The Cable Network Programming segment focuses on producing and licensing news and sports content for distribution through traditional and virtual multi-channel video programming distributors (MVPDs) and other digital platforms. The Television segment is involved in producing, acquiring, marketing, and distributing programming via the FOX broadcast network, its advertising-supported video-on-demand (AVOD) service Tubi, 29 full-power broadcast television stations, and other digital platforms. The company also includes Credible, a U.S. consumer finance marketplace, and the FOX Studio Lot in Los Angeles, California, which provides television and film production services and office space, both of which are reported under Corporate and Other ¹.

The company differentiates itself through its premium brands, including FOX News Media, FOX Sports, Tubi Media Group, FOX Entertainment, and FOX Television Stations, which focus on live and "appointment-based" content ². FOX News has been the top-rated national cable news channel in Monday to Friday primetime viewing for over 20 consecutive years and the #1 cable network in Monday to Friday primetime and total day viewing among total viewers for the tenth consecutive year ³. FOX Sports holds marquee rights for the National Football League (NFL), college football (Big Ten Conference), Major League Baseball (MLB), and National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR), among other cyclical events like the Super Bowl and FIFA Men's World Cup ⁴. Tubi, the AVOD service, experienced 13% growth in total view time in fiscal 2025 compared to the prior fiscal year and holds approximately 2.2% share of all television viewing according to Nielsen's The Gauge ⁵. FOX Entertainment has maintained the youngest and most diverse audience among broadcast networks in primetime for over two decades ⁶. FOX Television Stations cover 18 Nielsen-designated market areas (DMAs), including 14 of the 15 largest, and are often the #1 or #2 rated news provider in early morning hours in most of their operating markets among adults 25-54 ⁷.

The core business model revolves around generating revenue primarily from affiliate fees and advertising sales. For fiscal 2025, approximately 47% of total revenues were derived from affiliate fees, 42% from advertising, and 11% from other operating activities ⁸. Affiliate fees include monthly subscriber-based license and retransmission consent fees from programming distributors and fees from non-owned television stations affiliated with the FOX Network ⁹. Advertising revenue is generated from commercial time sales within network programming, owned and operated television stations, and various digital properties ¹⁰.

The Cable Network Programming segment generated total revenues of $6.930 billion in fiscal 2025, an increase of 16% from fiscal 2024 ¹¹. Affiliate fee revenue for this segment increased by $128 million, or 3%, to $4.316 billion ¹², primarily due to higher average rates per subscriber, partially offset by a decrease in the average number of subscribers ¹³. Advertising revenue increased by $269 million, or 21%, to $1.531 billion, driven by higher news pricing and audiences and increased news digital advertising revenue ¹⁴. Other revenues in this segment rose by $578 million, primarily due to higher sports sublicensing revenue ¹⁵. Segment EBITDA for Cable Network Programming increased by $337 million, or 13%, to $3.030 billion ¹⁶. Operating expenses for this segment increased by $607 million, or 23%, mainly due to higher sports programming rights amortization and production costs, particularly for college football, and increased newsgathering costs related to the 2024 presidential election ¹⁷.

The Television segment recorded total revenues of $9.325 billion in fiscal 2025, an 18% increase from fiscal 2024 ¹⁸. Advertising revenue in this segment increased by $1.2 billion, or 28%, to $5.334 billion, primarily driven by sports programming revenues, including the broadcast of Super Bowl LIX in February 2025 and higher NFL pricing ¹⁹. Political advertising revenue from the 2024 presidential and congressional elections and continued digital growth from Tubi also contributed to this increase ²⁰. Affiliate fee revenue increased by $204 million, or 7%, to $3.340 billion, due to higher average rates per subscriber, partially offset by a lower average number of subscribers at owned and operated television stations, and higher fees from FOX Network affiliated stations ²¹. Other revenues increased by $94 million, or 17%, primarily due to higher content revenue ²². Segment EBITDA for Television increased by $439 million, or 87%, to $945 million ²³. Operating expenses increased by $936 million, or 15%, mainly due to higher sports programming rights amortization and production costs, including NFL costs for Super Bowl LIX, and higher digital content and entertainment programming rights amortization ²⁴.

For the fiscal year ended June 30, 2025, total revenues were $16.300 billion, an increase of 17% from $13.980 billion in fiscal 2024 ²⁵. Operating expenses increased by $1.429 billion, or 16%, to $10.518 billion ²⁶. Selling, general and administrative expenses increased by $144 million, or 7%, to $2.168 billion ²⁷. Depreciation and amortization was $385 million ²⁸. Restructuring, impairment and other corporate matters amounted to $350 million ²⁹. Equity losses of affiliates were $29 million ³⁰. Interest expense, net, was $227 million ³¹. Non-operating other, net, was $438 million ³². Income before income tax expense was $3.061 billion ³³. Income tax expense was $768 million ³⁴. Net income was $2.293 billion ³⁵. Net income attributable to Fox Corporation stockholders was $2.263 billion, representing basic EPS of $4.97 and diluted EPS of $4.91 ³⁶. The company ended fiscal 2025 with $5.351 billion in cash and cash equivalents ³⁷. Total borrowings were $6.602 billion ³⁸. Net cash provided by operating activities was $3.324 billion ³⁹. Net cash used in investing activities was $537 million ⁴⁰. Net cash used in financing activities was $1.755 billion ⁴¹.

Year-over-year, total revenues increased by $2.320 billion, or 17%, in fiscal 2025 compared to fiscal 2024 ⁴². Affiliate fee revenue increased by $332 million, or 5%, primarily due to higher average rates per subscriber and increased fees from FOX Network affiliated television stations, partially offset by a lower average number of subscribers ⁴³. Advertising revenue increased by $1.421 billion, or 26%, driven by sports programming, including Super Bowl LIX and higher NFL pricing, political advertising revenue from the 2024 elections, and digital growth from Tubi ⁴⁴. Other revenues increased by $567 million, or 47%, mainly due to higher sports sublicensing revenue ⁴⁵. Operating expenses increased by $1.429 billion, or 16%, primarily due to higher sports programming rights amortization and production costs, digital content costs, entertainment programming rights amortization, and newsgathering costs ⁴⁶. Selling, general and administrative expenses increased by $144 million, or 7%, due to higher employee costs ⁴⁷. Net income attributable to Fox Corporation stockholders increased by $762 million, or 51%, from $1.501 billion in fiscal 2024 to $2.263 billion in fiscal 2025 ⁴⁸.

During fiscal 2025, the company expanded Tubi's content library with over 70 new original titles and launched 40 sports, entertainment, and local news channels, bringing the total to over 320 channels ⁴⁹. FOX Sports added rights from INDYCAR and LIV Golf and extended Big East Conference rights through 2031, while concluding its agreement with WWE ⁵⁰. FOX Television Stations saw over 150% growth in total view time across FOX Local Streams and LiveNOW from FOX due to the rollout of local news content on connected televisions and FAST services ⁵¹. In February 2025, FOX announced FOX One, a wholly-owned, direct-to-consumer streaming service expected to launch by Fall 2025, offering live and on-demand access to the full portfolio of FOX brands ⁵². The company acquired controlling ownership interests in two digital media companies during fiscal 2025 ⁵³. The put right held by the Credible minority interest shareholder was exercised in December 2024, with the transaction expected to be completed in the first half of fiscal 2026 ⁵⁴. The company retired $600 million of debt during fiscal 2025 ⁵⁵.

Management expects to continue paying semi-annual dividends, with a recently declared semi-annual dividend of $0.28 per share on both Class A and Class B Common Stock, payable on September 24, 2025, to shareholders of record as of September 3, 2025 ⁵⁶. Based on shares outstanding as of June 30, 2025, the total aggregate cash dividends expected to be paid in fiscal 2026 is approximately $250 million ⁵⁷. Fiscal 2026 net periodic pension expense for the company's pension plans is expected to be approximately $35 million, consistent with fiscal 2025 ⁵⁸.

A major growth area is the expansion of digital distribution offerings and direct engagement with consumers. Tubi continues to experience significant growth in total view time, streaming approximately 11 billion hours of content in fiscal 2025, a record for the platform ⁵⁹. Tubi's audience, primarily "cord-cutters" or "cord-nevers," is attractive to advertisers ⁶⁰. FOX News Media operates digital businesses like FOX News Digital, which leads in total views, minutes spent, and social interactions in digital news, along with the SVOD service FOX Nation and the FAST service FOX Weather ⁶¹. FOX Television Stations also operate digital businesses, including the FLX digital advertising platform and FAST services such as LiveNOW from FOX, FOX Local Streams, and FOX Soul ⁶².

Another significant growth vector is the planned launch of FOX One, a wholly-owned, direct-to-consumer subscription streaming service, by the Fall of 2025 ⁶³. This service is designed to offer subscribers live streaming and on-demand access to the full portfolio of FOX brands, including FOX News, FOX Sports, the FOX Network, the Big Ten Network, FOX Business, FOX Weather, FS1, FS2, FOX Deportes, and FOX Television Stations ⁶⁴. This initiative is expected to expand the reach of the company's programming beyond its existing footprint ⁶⁵.

The company aims to increase revenue growth through the continued delivery of high-quality, premium, and valuable content, leveraging its internal production capabilities and co-production arrangements to manage economics and programming decisions for its broadcast network and television stations ⁶⁶. The ability to deliver "appointment-based" viewing and audiences at scale, along with innovative advertising platforms, is expected to provide substantial value to advertising customers and help maintain or grow audiences amidst increasing consumer fragmentation ⁶⁷.

The company's capital allocation plans include a stock repurchase program. The Board has authorized a total stock repurchase program of $12 billion for Class A and Class B Common Stock, with approximately $400 million remaining as of June 30, 2025 ⁶⁸. Subsequent to June 30, 2025, the Board authorized incremental stock repurchases of an additional $5 billion, bringing the total authorization to $12 billion ⁶⁹. In fiscal 2025, the company repurchased approximately 21 million shares of Class A Common Stock for approximately $1 billion ⁷⁰. The company made contributions of $40 million to its pension plans in fiscal 2025, primarily voluntary, and does not expect material required contributions for the immediate future, though voluntary contributions may continue ⁷¹. Capital expenditures for fiscal 2025 were $331 million ⁷².

Management explicitly flagged several structural headwinds and execution risks. Changes in consumer behavior and evolving technologies, including the increasing use of generative AI, continue to challenge existing business models and may adversely affect the company's business ⁷³. Declines in linear television viewership and MVPD subscribers are expected to continue or accelerate, negatively impacting affiliate fee and advertising revenues ⁷⁴. The company also faces intense competition for content, distribution, viewers, and advertisers, with new entrants and vertically integrated competitors potentially having preferential access to competitive information or technologies like generative AI ⁷⁵. The inability to renew programming rights, especially for sports, on favorable terms could significantly reduce advertising and affiliate fee revenues ⁷⁶. Damage to the company's brands or reputation, including from content manipulation by bad actors or alleged deficiencies in AI-generated content, could also have a material adverse effect ⁷⁷.

Geographic, regulatory, and macro factors also pose constraints. Weak economic conditions, including high inflation and declining economic growth, can reduce advertising expenditures and increase operating costs ⁷⁸. The U.S. television broadcast industry is highly regulated by the FCC, and changes in laws, regulations, or their interpretation could negatively impact operations ⁷⁹. Foreign ownership limits under the Communications Act, which restrict non-U.S. persons from owning more than 25% of a broadcast station licensee, could affect the company's ability to acquire stations ⁸⁰. The FCC's reallocation of C-Band satellite transmission spectrum and ongoing proceedings to explore further reallocation could diminish transmission quality and increase interference, hindering programming delivery ⁸¹.

The company faces material risks from evolving consumer behavior and technologies, including generative AI, which challenge traditional business models and could lead to declines in linear television viewership and MVPD subscribers, negatively impacting affiliate fee and advertising revenues. Intense competition for content, particularly sports programming rights, could result in higher acquisition costs or loss of rights, adversely affecting advertising and affiliate fee revenues. Damage to the company's brands or reputation, potentially from content manipulation or alleged deficiencies in AI-generated content, could erode consumer trust. Weak economic conditions, including high inflation, could reduce advertising expenditures and increase operating costs. Regulatory changes, such as those from the FCC regarding broadcast licenses, ownership limits (e.g., the 39% national audience reach cap and 25% foreign ownership limit ⁸⁰), or satellite transmission spectrum reallocation, could impose significant compliance costs or operational restrictions. Cybersecurity threats and content piracy, exacerbated by new technologies like AI, pose ongoing risks of service disruption, data breaches, and intellectual property infringement, potentially leading to increased costs, liabilities, or revenue loss. Unfavorable litigation outcomes, such as the ongoing Smartmatic lawsuit, could result in significant monetary damages, injunctive relief, or reputational harm.

Management's message to shareholders emphasizes a commitment to maintaining leadership positions in live news, live sports, and quality entertainment, while strategically investing in digital distribution and direct consumer engagement. They highlight the strength of core businesses as a foundation for growth opportunities and brand extensions, such as FOX Nation and FOX Weather. The company plans to increase revenue growth by delivering high-quality content and leveraging internal production capabilities, expecting to launch the FOX One direct-to-consumer subscription streaming service by the Fall of 2025 ⁶³. Management also reiterated its intention to continue paying semi-annual dividends, with a recently declared dividend of $0.28 per share ⁵⁶, and announced an additional $5 billion in stock repurchase authorization, bringing the total to $12 billion ⁶⁹. Strategic priorities include optimizing the sports portfolio, expanding Tubi's content library and reach, and enhancing local news content distribution on digital platforms.