Rural U.S. telecom provider, Citizens Communications Co, posted higher-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings on Tuesday, bolstered by strong revenue from two recent acquisitions.

Net quarterly income came in at $59 million, or $0.18 per share, down from $63.9 million or $0.20 per share in the final quarter of 2006. Analysts had expected earnings of only $0.16 a share.

Overall revenue, meanwhile, rose 14% to $577.2 million, mostly due to the successful acquisition of two other telecom firms over the course of last year. Citizens purchased Commonwealth Telephone Enterprises on March 8 and Global Valley on October 31.

During the fourth quarter, Citizens added about 22,400 high-speed internet subscribers, but like most incumbent telecom carriers, suffered a decline in residential landline subscriptions.

Shares in the company, which competes against larger rivals, Verizon and Qwest, in a variety of markets, have climbed 18% since last month, when they touched a 52-week low.