Television broadcasting and production company AMC Networks (NASDAQ: AMCX) reported Q2 CY2025 results exceeding the market’s revenue expectations, but sales fell by 4.1% year on year to $600 million. Its non-GAAP profit of $0.69 per share was 13% above analysts’ consensus estimates.

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Company Overview

Originally the joint-venture of four cable television companies, AMC Networks (NASDAQ: AMCX) is a broadcaster producing a diverse range of television shows and movies.

Revenue Growth

A company’s long-term performance is an indicator of its overall quality. Any business can put up a good quarter or two, but many enduring ones grow for years. AMC Networks’s demand was weak over the last five years as its sales fell at a 4% annual rate. This was below our standards and is a sign of poor business quality.

We at StockStory place the most emphasis on long-term growth, but within consumer discretionary, a stretched historical view may miss a company riding a successful new product or trend. AMC Networks’s recent performance shows its demand remained suppressed as its revenue has declined by 12% annually over the last two years.

AMC Networks also breaks out the revenue for its three most important segments: Affiliate, Advertising, and Streaming, which are 25.2%, 20.5%, and 28.2% of revenue. Over the last two years, AMC Networks’s Affiliate (retransmission and licensing fees) and Advertising (marketing services) revenues averaged year-on-year declines of 13.2% and 14.9% while its Streaming revenue (subscription video on demand) averaged 12.7% growth.

This quarter, AMC Networks’s revenue fell by 4.1% year on year to $600 million but beat Wall Street’s estimates by 3%.

Looking ahead, sell-side analysts expect revenue to decline by 3.7% over the next 12 months. While this projection is better than its two-year trend, it’s tough to feel optimistic about a company facing demand difficulties.

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Operating Margin

Operating margin is a key measure of profitability. Think of it as net income - the bottom line - excluding the impact of taxes and interest on debt, which are less connected to business fundamentals.

AMC Networks’s operating margin has shrunk over the last 12 months and averaged 4.1% over the last two years. The company’s profitability was mediocre for a consumer discretionary business and shows it couldn’t pass its higher operating expenses onto its customers.

In Q2, AMC Networks generated an operating margin profit margin of 10.7%, up 9 percentage points year on year. This increase was a welcome development, especially since its revenue fell, showing it was more efficient because it scaled down its expenses.

Earnings Per Share

We track the long-term change in earnings per share (EPS) for the same reason as long-term revenue growth. Compared to revenue, however, EPS highlights whether a company’s growth is profitable.

Sadly for AMC Networks, its EPS declined by 18.9% annually over the last five years, more than its revenue. However, its operating margin actually improved during this time, telling us that non-fundamental factors such as interest expenses and taxes affected its ultimate earnings.

In Q2, AMC Networks reported adjusted EPS at $0.69, down from $1.24 in the same quarter last year. Despite falling year on year, this print easily cleared analysts’ estimates. Over the next 12 months, Wall Street expects AMC Networks’s full-year EPS of $2.76 to grow 8.5%.

Key Takeaways from AMC Networks’s Q2 Results

It was encouraging to see AMC Networks beat analysts’ EBITDA expectations this quarter. We were also happy its EPS outperformed Wall Street’s estimates. On the other hand, its Affiliate revenue missed. Overall, we think this was a solid quarter with some key areas of upside. The stock remained flat at $6.04 immediately following the results.

Indeed, AMC Networks had a rock-solid quarterly earnings result, but is this stock a good investment here? The latest quarter does matter, but not nearly as much as longer-term fundamentals and valuation, when deciding if the stock is a buy. We cover that in our actionable full research report which you can read here, it’s free.