Comcast's business services revenue surges in Q1; Home automation, security shows promise

Comcast’s ongoing diversification strategy continues to pay off as the cable giant lands more business customers and hits a $6 billion annual revenue run rate.

The company reported its first quarter results and highlighted business services as well as security and automation growth for the smart home.

Overall, Comcast reported first quarter earnings of $2.56 billion, or 53 cents a share, on revenue of $20.46 billion, up 8.9 percent from a year ago. Analysts expected earnings of 44 cents per share on revenue of $20.12 billion.

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Comcast added 297,000 customers in the first quarter. Business services revenue was $1.49 billion, up 13.6 percent from a year ago.

What’s worth noting is the mix of customer additions for Comcast. Comcast added 263,000 residential customers and most of them were single product (primarily internet) or double-play (TV and internet) additions. Comcast added 34,000 business customers and 5,000 security and automation additions.

Comcast’s security and automation business includes devices and networking to automate and secure homes.

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