NBCUniversal reported that Peacock reached 48 million subscribers in the second quarter and posted its first profitable quarter, during a presentation at the Bank of America 2026 Media, Communications & Entertainment Conference on Thursday, September 10.
About 80 percent of Peacock subscribers are on the ad-supported tier, according to the company. Programmatic advertising has grown from zero five years ago to $1 billion in annual revenue, NBCUniversal said. Sports and streaming now account for 60 percent of the company's advertising revenue, up from 30 percent before the pandemic.
NBC ranked No. 1 in total viewers for the 2025/26 TV season. Sunday Night Football has ranked No. 1 in prime time for 15 consecutive years. The Super Bowl was the highest-rated live event in NBC's 100-year history. The Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics was the company's highest-grossing advertising Winter Olympics and its highest-rated since 2014. Telemundo's World Cup coverage drew roughly 120 sponsors, with spending about double the 2022 event, and was the highest-rated Spanish-language World Cup in U.S. history.
The NBA regular season averaged about 2.8 million viewers—roughly double comparable games from the prior season—while playoff audiences topped 7 million. The Western Conference Finals marked the highest ratings in two decades across NBC and Peacock combined. Roughly 25 percent of Peacock users engage with product features built specifically for NBA content, and about 75 percent of NBA viewers also watch entertainment content on the platform.
On the engagement side, "Love Island" was the top streaming show of the summer, with about 40 percent of its viewers also watching World Cup coverage. "The Five-Star Weekend" became Peacock's top scripted original. Bravo averages 75 episodes watched monthly per user, with churn 33 percent below the platform average.
The company is expanding its bundling strategy through a partnership with YouTube that includes offering Peacock Premium bundled with YouTube Premium, extending NBCUniversal's linear portfolio through YouTube TV, and expanding advertising relationships around data and FreeWheel integrations. International bundling of Hayu and Universal+ with YouTube Premium is available in select markets. Peacock is also testing membership perks including a 25 percent discount on NBC and Bravo merchandise, free pizza after watching three movies in a month, and a free annual Instacart+ subscription.
Comcast stock was trading at $24.59, reflecting a one-year decline of roughly 18 percent. The company offers a dividend yield of 5.37 percent, raised for seven consecutive years, and a free cash flow yield of 23 percent.
The chairman of NBCUniversal Media Group said the company centralized its streaming and broadcast operations into a single programming group, marketing organization, and advertising and technology team. "This is not a sprint, it is a marathon at a sprinter's pace," he said. He added that the unbundling of paid television is likely giving rise to a "great rebundling of streaming," saying, "I think we are in that moment right now." He warned that without the right content mix, "you'll have a leaky bucket, because the content that drives acquisition doesn't necessarily drive retention and engagement."
