WWE Financial Day Preview – revenue estimates, Network prediction, more

WWE reports Fourth Quarter & year-end 2015 financial results on Thursday morning. WWE CEO Vince McMahon and financial executive George Barrios will then host the quarterly conference call at 11:00 a.m. EST.

What To Look For

– Will WWE’s quarterly revenue match or exceed expectations?

The expectation, according to a survey of analysts, is WWE will report quarterly revenue of $161.27 million. Seeking Alpha predicted an even higher total of $171.8 million based on their research.

– WWE’s stock price fell to a year-low on Wednesday and closed in the mid-$15 range. This sets up WWE to surge if the financial picture matches or exceed expectations, especially since analysts have set a price target of $18 per share.

– Year-end WWE Network subscriber count.

Analysts believe WWE ended 2015 with about 1.2 million paying subscribers, which would represent minimal growth from Q3.

Research analyst James Clement noted in a recent report on WWE business: “If 2016’s WrestleMania season doesn’t generate incremental buys on top of 1.2 million to, say, the 1.4 million level, the stock could see some pressure, especially if the company compounds lack of subscriber growth with a slug of investment spending to build network viewership for the long-term.”

– Official PPV business for Hell in a Cell, Survivor Series, and TLC.