A Tale of Two Cable Companies: Comcast Vs. Charter Broadband

Cable giants Charter and Comcast reported considerably different broadband results for the third quarter. As financial analysts at MoffettNathanson put it in a research note about Charter’s earnings, “Every unit metric in Charter’s report is strong, and more to the point, much stronger than Comcast’s. Every financial metric in Comcast’s report was strong and, again to the point, much stronger than Charter’s.” While Charter gained 63,000 broadband subscribers, Comcast lost 18,000. MoffettNathanson attributes Charter’s stronger performance, at least in part, to the company’s expansion into rural areas. Charter is offering deep price discounts. Comcast is likely to become more aggressive with its rural buildouts if it wins  Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program funding in some states.