Uniti Group had net income of $2.1 million in the third quarter this year, compared with quarterly earnings of $2.9 million last year, the Little Rock real estate investment trust reported Thursday.
Uniti earned a penny per share in the quarter, less than the 3 cents a share anticipated by 10 analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters.
Stock at Uniti, which was spun off from Windstream Holdings Inc. in 2015, closed at $20.01, up 23 cents in trading Friday on the Nasdaq exchange.
Uniti had revenue of $252.6 million, up 3 percent compared with revenue of $245.2 million in the third quarter last year.
In October, Uniti bought Information Transport Solutions for $54 million in cash. The company is a full-service provider of technology solutions, primarily to educational institutions in Alabama and Florida.
"This acquisition expands Uniti Fiber's product offerings and strengthens relationships with many new and existing customers," said Ken Gunderman, Uniti's chief executive officer.
Also in October, Uniti closed on its previously announced sale-leaseback and fiber acquisitions with CableSouth Media LLC. At the closing, Uniti acquired about 43,000 fiber-optic-strand miles in Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi, of which 34,000 miles have been leased back to CableSouth.
Uniti also announced the purchase of JKM Consulting Inc., which does business as M2 Connections, a fiber-optic provider in eastern Alabama. M2 owns about 200 route miles of fiber spanning five counties. Uniti will pay $6 million for the deal, which should close in the first quarter.
Uniti owns 5.4 million fiber-optic-strand miles, about 850 wireless towers and other communications real estate throughout the United States and Latin America.
Business on 11/03/2018