A one-time tax charge led Corus Entertainment on Thursday to post lower fourth quarter earnings.

The profit for the three months to August 31 dropped to $24.9 million, from $27.9 million in 2011, as combined revenue also fell two percent to $195.6 million.

Stripping out the $6.8 million tax charge, Corus recorded adjusted net income attributable to shareholders up 9% to $30.1 million during the latest quarter.

TV revenue was down 3% in the fourth quarter to $147.8 million in Q4, against a year-earlier $152.5 million, but up 3% for the full year to $651 million, compared to $629.5 million in 2011.

At the same time, Corus produced a Q4 segment profit of $54.5 million for TV, up 7% from a year-earlier $50.9 million, and a flat year-end segment profit for TV of $262.1 million.

Specialty ad revenue was up 7% in Q4, while subscriber revenues were down 1%.

“Corus finished the year with strong gains in specialty advertising revenues and segment profit for the fourth quarter,” Corus president and CEO John Cassaday said in a statement Thursday.

“Looking ahead, we are confident that disciplined cost controls, coupled with our portfolio of assets, position us well for continued growth in fiscal 2013,” he added.

From Playback online