Reuters: Hot Stocks: UPDATE 1-Pay TV firm Sky Deutschland returns to operating profit

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UPDATE 1-Pay TV firm Sky Deutschland returns to operating profit May 3rd 2013, 08:19 Fri May 3, 2013 4:19am EDT * Q1 EBITDA 5.8 mln vs 40.6 mln euro loss * Added 42,100 customers to 3.41 mln * Shares rise 7 pct to top sector index (Rewrites, adds detail, shares) FRANKFURT, May 3 (Reuters) - German pay-TV operator Sky Deutschland stuck to its full-year outlook on Friday after a growing subscriber base helped it swing to an operating profit in the first quarter. The group, which is controlled by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp , said it still expected to post a profit before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) for the full year thanks to robust customer growth. Sky Deutschland reported a first-quarter operating profit of 5.8 million euros ($7.6 million), up from a loss of 40.6 million in the year-earlier period. Last year, Sky Deutschland posted an operating profit in the second and third quarters on the back of a busy sporting summer, which included the London Olympics and the Euro 2012 soccer finals. But it has made only one annual profit since it was founded in the early 1990s. The company, which last year won the rights to broadcast top-flight German soccer league matches for the four seasons starting 2013/14 for 485.7 million euros per year, said its customer numbers rose 42,100 to 3.4 million in the first quarter. "Sky is gaining momentum ... and building a solid track record," said DZ Bank analyst Harald Heider, keeping his "buy" rating for the shares. Earlier this year, Sky Deutschland raised capital, with News Corp increasing its stake to 54.8 percent. News Corp so far has invested more than 1 billion euros in Sky Deutschland. Sky Deutschland shares were up 7 percent at 4.83 euros by 0811 GMT, the biggest rise in a European media index up 0.3 percent. Sky's shares have gained 17 percent so far this year, outperforming the index, which has advanced 10 percent. ($1 = 0.7649 euros) (Reporting by Harro ten Wolde; Editing by Maria Sheahan and Mark Potter) Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints

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