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The owner of Food Network and other cable properties continues to cook up a successful mix of programming.
Scripps Networks Interactive said revenue at five of its six cable networks posted double-digit revenue increases over last year, helping overall operating profits grow by 20 percent.
SNI shares advanced 3 percent on the news — and are now up 47.4 percent for the year.
Nomura media analyst Michael Nathanson said Knoxville-based SNI could be best-in-class in the media sector now reporting third-quarter results.
Nathanson said the performance of SNI, whose cable assets include HGTV, Travel Channel and DIY, was particularly noteworthy as it came against the summer Olympics.
Overall profit rose to 78 cents a share —beating the 74 cents forecast on Wall Street. Revenue rose 12 percent, to $566 million.
In order of size, revenue gains in the quarter were: Food Network, 11 percent; HGTV, 8.1 percent; Travel, 10 percent; DIY, 26 percent; Cooking, 31 percent; and Great American Country, 15 percent.
Revenue at Scripps digital division, which mainly includes network-branded websites, rose 12 percent.
Advertising revenue advanced 9.2 percent, to $374.5 million, while affiliate fees rose 15 percent, to $168.3 million.
Meanwhile, Scripps was controlled by a family trust until weeks ago, when the last direct descendant of the founder died and the trust turned into a partnership with new rules for those who want to trade their shares.
CEO Ken Lowe downplayed any likelihood of a sale in the near term.
It was business as usual, he said.
When asked for an update on the status of Tribune’s bankruptcy, Scripps CFO Joseph NeCastro said: “I’m hoping to see an exit not in the fourth quarter, but in the first quarter of next year.”