Strong Quarterly Results for DreamWorks Animation, as Profit Rises 24%

LOS ANGELES - DreamWorks Animation posted third-quarter net income of $24.4 million, or 29 cents a share, up about 24 percent from $19.7 million, or 23 cents per share, in the year-earlier quarter, the company said on Thursday. Revenue was $186.3 million, up about 16 percent from $160.8 million in the year-earlier quarter.

The strong results, which beat Wall Street estimates, were helped by the international performance of “Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted,” the company said.

Earnings were also lifted by income from the distribution of DreamWorks films on television under deals that include a recent agreement with the BBC, Lew Coleman, the studio's president, said in a conference call after the earnings were announced. Mr. Coleman said the television deals contributed about 8 cents per share to the earnings in the quarter.

For the first nine months, DreamWorks had income of about $46.3 million, or 54 cents per share, down about 26 percent from $62.5 million, or 74 cents a share in the year-earlier period. Revenue for the nine months fell about 0.4 percent, to $485.2 million, from $487.1 million.

During the conference call, Jeffrey Katzenberg, the chief executive of DreamWorks, said he expected results for the full year to fall short of last year's performance. He noted that the next DreamWorks feature film, “Rise of the Guardians,” will open on Nov. 21, which is somewhat later in the year than is usual for the company's holiday releases.

Michael Cieply covers the film industry from the Los Angeles bureau.