<p>Cox Communications Inc., the country's fourth-largest cable company, swung to a profit in the third quarter as revenue rose 11 percent, though net income was hurt by recent Florida hurricanes and an unfavorable legal ruling.</p><p>For the quarter ended Sept. 30, the Atlanta-based company Wednesday said it earned $42 million, or 7 cents a share, on revenue of $1.62 billion. In the same period last year, it lost $215.1 million, or 35 cents a share, on revenue of $1.46 billion.</p><p>Analysts were expecting earnings of 13 cents a share, according to Thomson First Call.</p><p>A Texas jury awarded a charitable foundation $21.7 million, including interest and attorney's fees, from Cox on Oct. 15 in a dispute over a sale of some small cable companies in 1999. Cox said it plans to appeal the case.</p><p>The company would have reported earnings a 11 cents a share if not for the Texas verdict and damage caused by the recent hurricanes. Cox didn't specify its exact losses from the hurricanes but said they should be recoverable except for a $5 million insurance deductible.</p><p>For the third quarter, the number of Cox subscribers rose 1.4 percent to 6.6 million from last year. Digital cable customers rose 14 percent to 2.4 million, while high-speed Internet subscriptions increased 32 percent to 2.4 million customers. Digital telephone customers rose 33 percent to 1.2 million.</p><p>Media company Cox Enterprises Inc., which owns 63 percent of Cox Communications, reached a deal earlier this month to buy the rest of the cable operator for $34.75 per share in cash _ or $8.35 billion.</p><p>New York Stock Exchange-listed Cox shares traded midday Wednesday at $34.45, up 1 cent.</p><p>In the nine months ended Sept. 30, the company earned $162.3 million, or 25 cents a share, on revenue of $4.75 billion. In the same period last year, it reported a loss of $126.5 million, or 20 cents a share, on revenue of $4.25 billion.</p><p>Cox said it still expects 2004 revenue to grow 11.5 percent to 12.5 percent, a forecast it also backed in July after its second quarter. That's about $6.42 billion to $6.48 billion, based on 2003 revenue of $5.76 billion. Analysts are expecting revenue of $6.45 billion.</p>
