WWE announces 2016 revenue set company record, WWE Network subscriptions averaged nearly 1.5 million

Some key figures from WWE’s financial disclosures earlier today.

•WWE announced 2016 Q4 revenue of $194.9 million compared to 2015 Q4.

•The subscriptions as of the end of Q4 were 1.41 million, with 1.04 million in the U.S. (Subscriptions at the end of January were 1.5 million.)

•Additionally, the Company projects average paid subscribers to WWE Network of 1.48 million in Q1.

•WWE Network profits are down $12 million due to increased expenses of additional original programming (such as added PPV events, “205 Live,” original cartoons, etc.)

•Stock closed at $20.96, an increase of over 8 percent compared to the open. It peaked at $21.44.

•As for 2016 overall, revenue ended at $729.2 million, up 11 percent from 2015, once again setting a record for the company. They experienced record levels of revenue from WWE Network, Television Rights Fees, Live Events, Venue Merchandise Sales, and WWE Shop sales.

•WWE Network subscribers watched a total of 294 million hours of content (up 15% from 256 million in 2015), yielding an average of 194 hours per household that places it among top cable and broadcast networks

•Vince McMahon said: “During the past year, we continued to successfully execute our content strategy, which resulted in significant operational achievements and generated record revenue. We grew WWE Network to an average of more than 1.5 million subscribers, attracted record attendance of 101,763 fans at WrestleMania, and strengthened the global reach of our television programs, completing distribution deals in China, Australia, Germany and Spain, among other countries. The increased engagement with our brands across multiple platforms provides a foundation for achieving our 2017 and long-term financial objectives.”

•George Barrios said: “Given the current scale and leverage of WWE Network, increases in its subscribers have the potential to drive meaningful growth in revenue and profit. Based on anticipated subscriber growth, we believe we can achieve our targeted record financial results. In 2017, we will continue to evaluate our financial performance and to balance earnings growth with investments that could enable us to deliver a wider range of content, strengthen our engagement with a broadening audience, and support our continuing digital and direct-to-consumer transformation.”