Sky Deutschland Core Profit Increases 8.5% On $61M Earnings During Second Quarter

German pay-TV provider Sky Deutschland said on Wednesday that its "second-quarter core profit" rose 8.5% as subscriber cancellations "dropped to a record low," according to Ten Wolde & Steitz of REUTERS. The company, controlled by Rupert Murdoch's entertainment group 21st Century Fox, reported second-quarter earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization of $60.54M. Sky Deutschland's "net subscriber numbers increased by 82,000 during the second quarter." DZ Bank analyst Harald Heider wrote, "All in all a solid set of key figures," keeping a "buy" rating on the stock, "partly due to the takeover offer from Britain's BskyB" (REUTERS, 8/6).