Windstream's 3rd-quarter profit falls more than 30%

— Little Rock-based Windstream said Thursday that its third-quarter profit was down more than 30 percent from the same period a year ago.

The company said in a statement that net income in the latest quarter was $54 million, compared with $78 million a year ago.

But, Windstream said, it saw sequential growth in revenue and operating income before depreciation and amortization because of increased business sales.

Under Generally Accepted Accounting Principals, the firm reported total revenue and sales of $1.55 billion and operating income of $248 million. That compares with total revenue of about $1 billion last year, a 52 percent increase.

“Our business continues to perform well, and I am confident in our ability to deliver strong free cash flow long-term to support our dividend,” Chief Executive Officer and President Jeff Gardner said in a news release. “The dividend is a key component of our investment thesis, and we believe it is the best way to provide returns to our shareholders.”

Windstream announced a 25-cent quarterly dividend Tuesday.

Windstream said it also in the third quarter released consolidated operating metrics to include telecommunications company PAETEC, which was acquired about a year ago. It also added about 6,000 new high-speed Internet customers in the period.

A conference call is scheduled for 7:30 a.m. Thursday. It can be accessed by calling (877) 374-3977 and using the conference ID 37407974 allowing 10 minutes before it starts. The call will also be streamed and posted on Windstream's investor website.

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