Business

Paramount CEO Bob Bakish announced layoffs at the media company.
He did not disclose how many jobs the company would cut.
The job reductions come amid layoffs at a range of media companies, and a CNBC report that David Ellison’s Skydance Media is interested in taking Paramount private.

Paramount executive Bob Bakish attends the 2022 MTV Europe Music Awards (EMAs) at the PSD Bank Dome in Duesseldorf, Germany, November 13, 2022. 
Thilo Schmuelgen | Reuters

Paramount CEO Bob Bakish announced layoffs at the media company Thursday, citing a need to “operate as a leaner company and spend less.”
“Our priority is to drive earnings growth. And we’ll get there by growing our revenue while closely managing costs — a balance that will require every team, division and brand to be aligned,” Bakish said in a memo to employees.

“Where possible, we’ll look to expand our shared services model as we streamline operations. As it has over the past few years, this does mean we will continue to reduce our workforce globally,” he added.
Paramount did not immediately disclose how many jobs the company would cut. It also plans to reduce international content spending, Bakish said in the memo.
The company reports quarterly earnings at the end of February and plans to elaborate on its 2024 strategy then.
The cuts come as a range of companies in the media industry and beyond announce layoffs while they push to trim costs. The Los Angeles Times, Business Insider and Sports Illustrated, among others, have cut jobs in recent days in a tumultuous stretch for media.
The layoffs also come as David Ellison’s Skydance Media explores a deal to take Paramount private, CNBC reported Wednesday.

Bakish acknowledged challenges facing the company including a soft market, economic volatility, and strikes by Hollywood writers and actors that stymied studio production for much of the summer. He appeared to hint at the acquisition rumors swirling around Paramount.
“Amid all this change, it’s no surprise that Paramount remains a topic of speculation. We’re a storied public company in a closely followed industry,” he said. “But I have always believed the best thing we can do is concentrate on what we can control — execution. Leaning into what’s working, while continually adjusting to current realities.”
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Pending home sales are down 8% year over year, according to Redfin. It’s the biggest decline in four months.
Part of the decrease can be explained by severe winter weather that has sidelined potential homebuyers.

A “For Sale” sign stands outside a home following a snow fall in Geneseo, Illinois, U.S., on Monday, Jan. 20, 2020. The National Association Of Realtors is scheduled to release Existing Homes Sales figures on January 22. Photographer:
Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Severe winter weather is hindering home sales across the country, according to a Thursday report from real estate company Redfin.
The median U.S. home-sale price has been steadily increasing, rising around 5% in the first four weeks of January, alongside asking prices, Redfin reported. While low inventory – down 4% year over year – and increased purchasing power have contributed to the high price tags, Redfin said winter weather has also factored into sluggish sales.

Pending home sales are down more than 8% year over year, which Redfin reported as the biggest decline in four months. With potential homebuyers in areas facing severe winter weather staying home, that number has continued to climb.
The winter season has been plagued by an arctic freeze, dangerous snow and ice storms across the country and even heavy rain across drought-stricken California. The Midwest experienced near-record lows holding steady at subzero temperatures.
“Real estate is usually slow in the Midwest in the winter, but this year it’s even slower than usual because the weather has been so extreme,” Redfin agent Christine Kooiker from Michigan said in a release. “Casual house hunters are staying home to avoid the roads — but inventory is low enough that serious buyers are finding a way to see desirable homes. I also believe we’ll get busier as we approach spring.”
Real estate agents from warmer climates reported more active buyers and sellers, even with the mortgage rates stable in the high 6% range, Redfin added.
For the first month of 2024, the median home sale price was around $360,000, according to Redfin. Metros with the biggest year-over-year price increases included Anaheim, California, which saw a 13.6% jump; New Brunswick, New Jersey, at 13.5%; and Miami, Florida, at 13.3%.
Home sales in December slumped to close out the worst year since 1995, according to the National Association of Realtors. More

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GM and Honda have begun commercial production of hydrogen fuel cell systems in a step toward offering alternative zero-emissions solutions beyond battery-electric vehicles.
The fuel cell systems are produced through a 50-50 joint venture between the automakers at an $85 million facility in suburban Detroit.
Many in the automotive industry view fuel cells as a replacement for use cases for diesel fuel in things such as generators, heavy-duty trucks, semitrucks and construction equipment, among others.

An employee assembles a fuel cell system in the module final assembly at Fuel Cell System Manufacturing LLC, GM and Honda’s fuel cell joint venture in Brownstown, Michigan.
Courtesy image

BROWNSTOWN, Mich. – General Motors and Honda Motor have begun commercial production of hydrogen fuel cell systems in a step toward offering alternative zero-emissions solutions beyond battery-electric vehicles.
The fuel cell systems are produced through a 50-50 joint venture between the automakers at an $85 million facility in suburban Detroit. The companies, which are marketing and selling products separately, are calling the “large-scale” production at the joint venture the first of its kind in the U.S.

Many in the automotive industry view fuel cells as a replacement for use cases for diesel fuel in things such as generators, heavy-duty trucks, semitrucks and construction equipment, among others.
Executives for both automakers and the Fuel Cell System Manufacturing LLC joint venture, as it’s called, said the start of commercial production marked a historical moment for the technology, which has been under development for decades.
And it comes at a key time for fuel cells.
Tightening emissions regulations, technological improvements, and heightened attention on environmental, social and corporate-governance, or ESG, efforts have created a clear opportunity, officials said.
“We’re getting some scale capability; we’re bringing costs down. And now we can start to move it into these segments where before it wasn’t really feasible,” Charlie Freese, executive director of GM’s “Hydrotec” fuel cell products, told CNBC during an event at the plant.

Jay Joseph, vice president of sustainability and business development at American Honda Motor Co., on Jan. 24 discusses the company’s upcoming fuel cell vehicle that will be based off the CR-V crossover.
Michael Wayland/CNBC

“If we don’t plant the seeds of future use for hydrogen today, it’ll just be delayed even further,” said Jay Joseph, vice president of sustainability and business development at American Honda Motor Co.
Honda and GM began working together on the current fuel cell system in 2013. The highly automated process of producing the systems is complex and involves expensive materials such as platinum and carbon fiber, combined to produce flat “cells.” Each fuel cell system has 307 cells in it that are vertically stacked.
Honda’s system is expected to be introduced into vehicles this year with a crossover based on the popular CR-V. GM’s first applications are expected to be for backup power stations and large trucks in Autocar’s fleet.
Honda’s forthcoming fuel cell vehicle is expected to be sold primarily in California, where some retail refueling stations for hydrogen vehicles have already been installed. The Japanese automaker previously sold a fuel cell vehicle called the Clarity, which ended production in 2021.

Production and challenges

Honda expects to sell roughly 2,000 of the fuel cell systems annually by 2025, followed by 60,000 units in 2030 and a few hundred thousand units per year by the second half of the 2030s.
That production volume compares with millions of traditional vehicles and EVs that GM and Honda are expected to produce in the years head.
GM declined to release production or sales expectations for its fuel cell system, but Freese said the factory is capable of scaling as needed and that both automakers are “looking at the same market and seeing the same kinds of opportunities.”

A GM Hydrotec fuel cell power cube on display at the company’s joint venture facility with Honda in Brownstown, Michigan.
Michael Wayland/CNBC

In 2017, GM said it expected to produce at least one fuel cell passenger vehicle by 2023, however it ditched that plan less than three years later to focus on battery-electric vehicles for consumers.
Freese said GM continues to view fuel cells as supplemental to GM’s plans for battery-electric vehicles, which include ending production of traditional gas-powered vehicles for consumers by 2035.
Hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles and equipment operate much like battery-electric ones but are powered by electricity generated from hydrogen and oxygen instead of pure batteries, with water vapor as the only byproduct. They’re filled up with a nozzle almost as quickly as traditional gas and diesel vehicles.
Fuel cell vehicles face the same challenges as battery-electric models, including consumer acceptance, fueling infrastructure and cost. Those hurdles are why many expect fuel cells to first enter commercial applications such as trucking with its set routes and destinations.
The challenges are also why some critics doubt the potential market. Elon Musk, CEO of U.S. leader in battery-electric vehicles Tesla, has criticized fuel cells as “fool cells,” a “load of rubbish” and “mind-bogglingly stupid.” More

Alaska Airlines said Thursday that the weekslong grounding of the Boeing 737 Max 9 will cost the carrier $150 million.
The FAA grounded Boeing 737 Max 9 planes after a panel blew out during Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 on Jan. 5.
The FAA has cleared instructions that pave the way for the 737 Max 9 planes to return to service.

Alaska Airlines N704AL, a 737 Max 9, which made an emergency landing at Portland International Airport on January 5 is parked at a maintenance hanger in Portland, Oregon on January 23, 2024. 
Patrick T. Fallon | AFP | Getty Images

Alaska Airlines said Thursday that the weekslong grounding of the Boeing 737 Max 9 will cost the carrier $150 million.
The Federal Aviation Administration grounded the planes a day after a door plug blew out during an Alaska flight on Jan. 5. Late Wednesday the agency said it approved inspection instructions that would allow that type of aircraft to return to service.

Alaska said Wednesday the first Max 9 flights would resume as early as Friday and that it would gradually return the aircraft to service through early February.
Both Alaska and United Airlines, the two U.S. carriers that have the Max 9s in their fleets, said they found loose bolts on several Max 9 planes during preliminary inspections shortly after the accident.
Alaska on Thursday forecast full-year adjusted earnings per share of between $3 and $5, including the hit from the Max grounding. Analysts polled by LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv, were predicting adjusted earnings of of $4.93 a share on average.
Alaska said prior to the grounding, it expected to grow capacity from 3% to 5% this year, but, “given the grounding, and the potential for future delivery delays, the Company expects capacity growth to be at or below the lower end of this range.”
Alaska and United CEOs have expressed frustration and anger with Boeing this week after the accident.

“I’m more than frustrated and disappointed,” Alaska CEO Ben Minicucci told NBC News on Tuesday. “I am angry.”
The impairment disclosure Thursday came alongside the company’s fourth-quarter earnings report.
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Comcast revenue rose 2.3% to $31.25 billion in the fourth quarter.
Net income rose 7.8% to $3.26 billion, or 81 cents a share.
Peacock added 3 million subscribers in the quarter, bringing the streaming service to 31 million overall.
Comcast increased its dividend by 8 cents, or 7%, to $1.24 per share

Omar Marques | Lightrocket | Getty Images

Comcast topped both revenue and profit estimates in the fourth quarter as it lost fewer broadband subscribers than expected, and it raised its dividend 7%, the company said Thursday.
Here’s how Comcast performed, compared with estimates from analysts surveyed by LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv.

Earnings per share: 84 cents adjusted vs. 79 cents expected
Revenue: $31.25 billion vs. $30.51 billion expected

For the quarter ended Dec. 31, net income rose 7.8% to $3.26 billion, or 81 cents a share, compared with $3.02 billion, or 70 cents a share, a year earlier. Revenue increased 2.3% compared with the prior-year period. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) was flat year over year at about $8 billion.
“For the third consecutive year, we generated the highest revenue, adjusted EBITDA and adjusted EPS in our company’s history,” Comcast Chief Executive Officer Brian Roberts said in a statement. “We also reported the highest adjusted EBITDA on record at Theme Parks; were the #1 studio in worldwide box office for the first time since 2015; and maintained Peacock’s position as the fastest growing streamer in the U.S.”

Comcast chairman and CEO Brian L. Roberts.
Getty Images

Comcast increased its dividend by 8 cents, or 7%, to $1.24 per share on an annualized basis for 2024. It’s the 16th consecutive year the company has raised its dividend. Comcast also approved a new share repurchase program authorization with no expiration date for $15 billion, effective as of Friday.
Free cash flow in the fourth quarter was $1.7 billion and $13 billion for the year.
Comcast lost 34,000 domestic broadband subscribers — less than the average analyst estimate of about 62,000 as compiled by StreetAccount. Despite the losses, domestic broadband revenue rose 3.7% to $6.4 billion. Average revenue per user jumped 3.9% as customers connected more devices and spent more for higher Internet speeds.

Comcast added 310,000 wireless subscribers, trailing the average analyst forecast of about 342,000 gained. The company lost 389,000 video subscribers — a narrower loss than the average analyst estimate of nearly 458,000.
Theme parks adjusted EBITDA rose 11.6% to $872 million, which trailed analyst estimates of roughly $897 million. The figure still broke a quarterly record for Comcast.

NBCUniversal results

NBCUniversal’s flagship streaming service, Peacock, added 3 million subscribers as revenue increased more than 50% to $1.03 billion, marking the first time Peacock has topped $1 billion or more in a quarter. Peacock lost an adjusted $825 million in the quarter, narrowing its loss from $978 million in the same period a year prior. Peacock ended the quarter with 31 million subscribers.
Overall media revenue rose 3.1% to nearly $7 billion, but adjusted EBITDA fell 50% to $108 million due to increased sports programming costs and higher programming costs at Peacock. The increase in sports costs reflected higher media rights for NFL programming, the Premier League and the Big 10.
Domestic advertising revenue decreased 6.9% year over year to $2.64 billion, although sales would have increased 2.7% in the quarter with the exclusion of last year’s World Cup advertising.
Theatrical revenue rose 59% in the quarter based largely on the performance of four films: “Five Nights at Freddy’s,” “Trolls Band Together,” “The Exorcist: Believer” and “Migration.” Universal ranked first in global box office in 2023 for the first time since 2015 and produced three of the top five movies: “The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” “Oppenheimer” and “Fast X.”
Disclosure: Comcast owns NBCUniversal, the parent company of CNBC. More

American Airlines on Thursday posted a $19 million profit for the last three months of 2023.
The airline beat Wall Street estimates on the top and bottom lines.
The earnings report comes on a a busy day for the airline industry, with Southwest and Alaska also reporting fourth-quarter earnings.

Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, from American Airlines company, taking off from Barcelona airport, in Barcelona on 24th February 2023. 
JanValls | Nurphoto | Getty Images

American Airlines on Thursday posted a $19 million profit for the last three months of 2023, topping Wall Street estimates on the top and bottom lines.
Shares of the company rose about 5% in premarket trading.

Here’s how American performed in the last quarter of 2023 compared to Wall Street estimates compiled by LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv:

Earnings per share: 29 cents adjusted vs. 10 cents per share expected.
Revenue: $13.06 billion vs. $13.02 billion expected.

For the last three months of 2023, American Airlines reported net income of $19 million, down nearly 98% from $803 million the year prior. Earnings per share decreased to 3 cents from $1.14 in the fourth quarter of 2022.
Adjusting for one-time items, including the impact of a new labor agreement with the airline’s pilots, American earned 29 cents per share.
In its third-quarter earnings report, the airline had estimated it would break even for the December period.
“We’re really pleased with the results, we closed out the year strong,” CEO Robert Isom told CNBC’s Phil LeBeau Thursday. “At American, we’re focused on reliability, profitability and really strengthening our balance sheet. We’ve done all of those… I think that we’re going to have a really busy first and second quarter, and I think the time to buy is right now for travel. It’s going to be a busy year.”

Looking ahead, American said it expects a net loss per share of between 15 cents and 35 cents, adjusted, for the first quarter of 2024. Costs, excluding fuel are expected to rise between 2% and 4% for the period, with flying capacity up between 6.5% and 8.5%.
For the full year 2024, American expects adjusted earnings per share of $2.25 to $3.25 with flying capacity up mid-single digits over 2023.
In a letter to American team members, Isom said the strength of the business meant all U.S. and Canada-based employees will receive a profit-sharing payment in March.
The earnings report comes on a a busy day for the airline industry, with Southwest and Alaska also reporting fourth-quarter earnings Thursday. United Airlines on Monday posted higher-than-expected earnings and revenue and a sunny forecast for 2024.
Carriers have been navigating tricky winter weather in the early weeks of January, but American said it achieved its best-ever on-time departures over the December holidays.
Industry eyes have been on the Boeing 737 Max 9 plane of late after that aircraft model was grounded by the Federal Aviation Administration earlier this month following an Alaska Airlines midflight incident.
American doesn’t have any of the planes in its fleet, but it does have the more common 737 Max 8, with 20 more planned for this year, according to Isom. However, late Wednesday, the FAA said it would halt Boeing’s ability to increase 737 Max production, which could hit future deliveries of aircraft.
“We have a safety management system that we worked on with the FAA, and in that, we try to identify anything that may be an issue or cause for further investigation – and that even holds true when it comes to taking aircraft deliveries,” Isom told CNBC on “Squawk Box.” “We need all of our partners… to do their job, and that’s producing a quality product.” More