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WORTH OVER $50---TO $100 IMHO $FOXA
NOT SURE---PEOPLE DO KNOW AH GOODIE WHEN PRESENTED $FOXA
i think because dis hasn't paid murdock---cash is king
i am thinking dis buy's this one or uses it for streaming.
this should $50
'Twenty-First Century Fox, Inc. (FOXA)'
Hey mick, any idea why this thing keeps tanking after a double beat on earnings? I was up pretty good and held into earnings and this thing hasn't stopped tanking ever since. I'm down 8% in just a couple of days on a double beat. This doesn't make sense.
WAY UNDER VALUE --- I DON'T DIS PAID FOXA FOR THE BUYOUT STUFF FOXA
NEW YORK, Aug 7 (Reuters) - Media company Fox Corp reported quarterly results that beat Wall Street estimates on Wednesday, boosted by higher fees collected from cable and satellite operators and online distributors.
The company said its adjusted profit for the quarter was 62 cents per share, beating analysts' estimates by 3 cents, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.
Revenue, which rose nearly 5% to $2.51 billion in the quarter, also beat Wall Street expectations of $2.47 billion.
Rupert Murdoch's newly spun-off Fox Corp debuted on the Nasdaq in March following the $71 billion sale of Twenty-First Century Fox's film and television assets to Walt Disney Co .
It emerged a leaner, more nimble company seeking to build on its concentration of live news and sports, including World Wrestling Entertainment Inc and Super Bowl LIV next February.
Overall revenue growth in Fox's fiscal fourth quarter was largely driven by a 7.4% increase in affiliate revenues, or the fees collected from cable and satellite operators and online distributors, to $1.41 billion.
Those increases were offset by a 6% decline in advertising revenues with fewer FIFA World Cup soccer matches, the company said. Sales in the broadcaster's cable network programming business rose 2.2% to $1.3 billion.
On Tuesday, Fox Entertainment said it would buy animation studio Bento Box Entertainment, which produces hits including Bob's Burgers. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Fox also said on Sunday it was spending $265 million for a 67% stake in Credible Labs Inc, an online consumer financial marketplace, and that it would invest up to another $75 million of growth capital over about two years.
In May, Fox spent more than $236 million for a nearly 5% percent equity stake in The Stars Group Inc to build FOX Bet, a Fox-branded sports betting platform expected to launch this fall in U.S. states where sports wagering is legal.
The betting product is on track to launch before football season, said Chief Executive Officer Lachlan Murdoch during a call with analysts and investors on Wednesday.
Even last year before its spin-off had closed, Fox began pivoting into new companies. In September, it invested $100 million in new social broadcasting platform Caffeine TV and plans to launch a content studio jointly owned by Caffeine and FOX Sports.
Net income for the quarter fell to $454 million, or 73 cents per share, in the three months ended June 30, from $471 million, or 76 cents per share, a year earlier.
(Reporting by Akanksha Rana in Bengaluru and Hilary Russ in New York; editing by Sriraj Kalluvila and Bill Berkrot)
HI THERE GOOD EVENING FRIEND
FOX News Channel to Present Live Coverage of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s Live Testimony Before the House Judiciary Com... Business Wire - 7/22/2019 9:50:00 AM
Twenty-First Century (FOXA)
36.22 ? 0.12 (0.33%)
Volume: 5,573,558 @07/23/19 5:54:06 PM EDT
Bid Ask Day's Range
35.75 38.86 35.84 - 36.39
FOXA Detailed Quote
Twenty-First Century (FOXA)
36.15 ? 0.02 (0.06%)
Volume: 3,917,054 @06/18/19 3:56:03 PM EDT
Bid Ask Day's Range
36.14 36.15 36.08 - 37.05
FOXA Detailed Quote
Looking for entry... thoughts? Near 52 week lows, but looks like more downside coming
Twenty-First Century (FOXA)
36.64 ? -0.28 (-0.76%)
Volume: 4,387,381 @05/28/19 6:00:11 PM EDT
Bid Ask Day's Range
36.37 39.3 36.505 - 37.34
FOXA Detailed Quote
HI THERE PETER, --- The Walt Disney Co. (DIS) and Fox Corp. (FOX)(FOXA)
Klarman previously amassed a sizable position in Twenty-First Century Fox. When Disney moved to acquire the company, his interests were split.
When the deal closed earlier this year, Twenty-First Century Fox shareholders (including Klarman) received roughly $38 per share in cash or Disney stock, plus one-third of a share of the new Fox.
It's tough to tell exactly how Klarman converted his holdings, but it appears as if he opted to maintain his bet mostly on Fox. Following the acquisition, Klarman's Disney position is just 0.4% of his portfolio, while Fox composes 10.1%.
This could be an interesting way to play Klarman's bet on Fox. Since the new Fox was created in March, shares have fallen by 10%. Disney stock, meanwhile, is up nearly 20%.
Perhaps the asymmetry can be attributed to forced selling as all investors were given a one-third share of the new Fox regardless of whether they wanted it.
Typically, the stock of the smaller entity is what is sold off. With Disney's $242 billion market cap easily outweighing Fox's $23 billion valuation, it's easy to see that occurring here.
Now trading at less than 15 times forward earnings, Fox is one of the cheapest stocks in Klarman's portfolio based on absolute valuation.
Read more here:
been ah great spring, need some winners, need da silver screen stuff
$FOXA
Good morning Mick
good morning peter, really busy taking care of wife
happy sunday , 04-14-201 --- we pray
thank you, good one , good read my friend
THIS IIS CALL THE NEW 'Twenty-First Century Fox, Inc. (FOXA)'
NEW COMPANY DISTRIBUTION BY DIS AND FOXA --- 'Twenty-First Century Fox, Inc. (FOXA)'
Correction to 'Yankees in Talks With Amazon, Sinclair to Bid for
YES Sports Network' Dow Jones News - 12/28/2018 8:12:00 AM
Yankees in Talks With Amazon, Sinclair to Bid for YES Sports Network Dow Jones News - 12/28/2018 5:59:00 AM
Twenty-First Century (FOXA)
47.97 ? -0.04 (-0.08%)
Volume: 6,440,625 @ 5:03:19 PM EST ET
Bid Ask Day's Range
47.13 48.39 47.7 - 48.5
FOXA Detailed Quote
AT&T and Fox Networks Group Renew Multi-Year Deal Across AT&T's Distribution Platforms PR Newswire (US) - 11/18/2018 2:00:00 PM
ABC Entertainment President to Step Down Dow Jones News - 11/16/2018 7:59:00 PM
Current Report Filing (8-k) Edgar (US Regulatory) - 11/14/2018 4:47:15 PM
Yankees in Talks to Buy Fox's 80% Stake in YES Network -New York Post Dow Jones News - 11/12/2018 3:32:00 PM
Twenty-First Century (FOXA)
49.005 ? 0.845 (1.75%)
Volume: 26,268,965 @ 2:30:48 PM EST ET
Bid Ask Day's Range
49.0 49.01 47.9 - 50.0
FOXA Detailed Quote
FOXA News: FOX Business Network Taps The Wall Street Journal’s Gerry Baker for Weekly Primetime Series 11/12/2018 01:43:00 PM
FOXA News: Quarterly Report (10-q) 11/07/2018 04:48:02 PM
FOXA News: Current Report Filing (8-k) 11/07/2018 08:20:18 AM
FOXA News: 21st Century Fox Reports First Quarter Income From Continuing Operations Attributable To 21st Century Fox Stockholders Of $1.... 11/07/2018 08:01:00 AM
FOXA News: FOX News to Launch FOX Nation on November 27th 10/25/2018 11:25:00 AM
part two/ Neither Disney CEO Robert Iger nor Fox Executive Co-Chairman Rupert Murdoch was in attendance at Friday's respective meetings.
By Annlee Ellingson – Staff Writer, L.A. Biz
Jul 27, 2018, 8:00am
https://www.bizjournals.com/losangeles/news/2018/07/27/fox-disney-shareholders-approve-blockbuster-merger.html?ana=yahoo&yptr=yahoo
The vote was scheduled to take place earlier this month but was delayed when Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ: CMCSA) entered the fray.
In December 2017, Disney (NYSE: DIS) offered $52 billion in stock for the Twentieth Century Fox Film and Television studios, along with the New York media conglomerate’s cable and international TV businesses.
Then last month Comcast, in the wake of a federal court’s ruling that AT&T could go ahead and acquire Time Warner Inc. for $85 billion, Comcast threw its hat in the ring for Fox’s assets with a $65 billion offer.
Disney then upped its bid to $71 billion, ultimately pushing Comcast out of the race.
The U.S. Department of Justice has already approved Disney’s bid, provided the studio divests Fox’s 22 regional sports networks, but it still needs to gain regulatory approval in more than a dozen global markets. The deal is expected to close next year.
Fox will spin off a portfolio of news, sports and broadcast businesses to create a “new Fox” centered on live news and sports brands, anchored by the Fox Network.
Meanwhile, Fox, Comcast and Disney are also entangled in a bidding war for European pay-television provider Sky plc.
how will foxa divide for foxa shareholders ????? will any of foxa be left for we shareholders ?????
partial shares to foxa from dis -
Sky Takeover Explained/ 4:40 am ET August 23, 2018 (Dow Jones) Print
British pay-TV group Sky PLC has become the target of a bidding war involving some of the world's largest media companies.
NBCUniversal Inc.'s owner, Comcast Corp., raised its offer to buy
all of Sky to GBP25.9 billion on July 11.
The move came just hours after Rupert Murdoch's 21st Century Fox Inc., which already owns 39% of Sky,
increased its original bid to consolidate ownership of the
U.K. company. The intensified bidding made the fight for control
of Sky a central battlefield in the broader clash between Comcast
and Walt Disney Co.
to acquire most of Fox's entertainment assets, until Comcast dropped its pursuit of the Fox assets.
WHO'S WHO?
Sky is Europe's largest pay-TV operator, with operations in seven countries. It had more than 23 million customers as of June 30, 2018.
In the fiscal year to the end of June, Sky had revenue of GBP13.59 billion and a pretax profit of GBP864 million.
Fox is an American TV and entertainment group controlled by the
Murdoch Family Trust, which also controls Dow Jones's parent,
News Corp, as well as several U.K. newspapers among other properties.
On June 20, Fox agreed to sell most of its assets to Disney--
including the Sky interest. A previous deal reached in December,
was challenged by Comcast,
which dropped its pursuit of the assets on July 19.
Comcast is an American cable juggernaut that owns NBCUniversal as
well as the Xfinity cable and telecommunications service.
It attempted to buy Fox's entertainment assets, making an
unsolicited bid for them on June 13, but walked away weeks later.
It continues to seek the acquisition of Sky.
Walt Disney is the American media conglomerate that houses the
namesake Disney brand,
Star Wars franchise owner Lucasfilm, U.S. sports channel ESPN
and Marvel in its portfolio.
Disney said on June 20 that it would assume full-ownership of Sky
if Fox buys the stake it doesn't own prior
to completion of the deal between the two American companies.
WHY SKY?
With a market value of GBP26.06 billion as of July 30,
Sky has a more modest scale than its American suitors.
But it is in many ways a smaller version of what American media companies are trying to become:
an integrated distribution platform that produces its own content.
HOW IS THE DEAL STRUCTURED?
Comcast has lifted its offer price for Sky to GBP14.75 a share,
valuing the company at $34 billion.
That represents a 5% premium to Fox's latest offer and an
18% increase to Comcast's previous GBP12.50-a-share bid .
Comcast said its latest offer was recommended by Sky's independent directors,
who withdrew their earlier support of the Fox bid.
Fox had raised its original bid by 30% to GBP14.00 a share for
the 61% of Sky it doesn't already own.
Fox launched its bid to consolidate ownership of the
U.K. satellite-TV company in December 2016.
However, the deal came under the scrutiny of British regulators,
who after a lengthy review formally cleared it on July 12.
Fox agreed to sell Sky's news operations to Disney with a promise
to fund the news service
with at least GBP100 million a year for 15 years,
to ease government's concerns that a Sky takeover would give the
Murdoch family too much influence over U.K. media.
Fox said on Aug. 7 that the deal is dependent on approval from shareholders representing 75% of Sky shares
that it doesn't currently hold.
However, Fox said it reserves the right to reduce the acceptance condition to a level not less
than a simple majority of all Sky shares.
WHAT TOOK SO LONG?
Fox launched its bid to consolidate ownership of Sky in December 2016, but the deal was held up by British regulators.
In December 2017, Fox agreed to sell most of its assets--
including its current 39% stake in Sky--to Disney. From then on,
the fate of the Sky takeover was linked to that of the much larger
fight for the Fox assets.
Comcast, which had tried to strike a deal with Fox for its
entertainment assets, emerged as a suitor for Sky in February, confirming a takeover proposal in April. In June, Comcast made a separate, unsolicited offer for the Fox assets as a whole.
The Comcast move triggered a higher offer from Disney for those assets, which was accepted by Fox.
Disney said then that it would take full ownership of Sky upon completion of the Fox deal,
if Fox ended up buying the 61% of the U.K. company it doesn't own.
Fox, backed by Disney, increased its offer on July 11,
but Comcast quickly responded with a higher offer,
which received the support of the Sky independent directors.
Days later, Comcast dropped its pursuit of the Fox assets
and said it would focus on buying the British pay-TV group.
Shareholders of Disney and Fox approved the $71 billion deal
between the two companies on July 27.
Mr. Murdoch's first attempt to take over Sky at the beginning of
the decade failed amid a public and political backlash over
his now-defunct U.K. tabloid newspaper
News of the World's phone-hacking scandal.
WHAT'S NEXT?
Comcast has extended the period for Sky shareholders to accept its
offer until 1200 GMT on Sept. 12
after receiving acceptances for just 0.21% of Sky shares by the
first deadline of Aug. 22.
Fox published its own offer documents on Aug. 7,
triggering a 46-day deadline to revise its bid.
Under U.K. takeover rules,
Fox will now have until Sept. 22 to raise its proposal and
try to outbid Comcast.
The first closing date for Sky shareholders to accept Fox' offer is Sept. 17.
Separately, the U.K. Takeover Panel has ruled that Disney would
be required to offer GBP14.00 a share for 61% of Sky
if it succeeds in acquiring Fox's entertainment assets,
setting a new floor price in the bidding war for the British media group.
The regulatory body confirmed its decision on Aug. 3 after a
hearing requested by various interested parties,
but on Aug. 8 the panel said it would consider appeals lodged
by several interested parties against the ruling.
It has scheduled a hearing to consider the appeals for Aug. 15
Analysts have speculated that Disney could reach an agreement
with Comcast and cede the European business to the cable company.
However, Disney Chief Executive Robert Iger indicated on Aug. 7
that he wanted to win Sky,
citing it as one of Fox's international assets that fits into
Disney's "global growth strategy."
Stu Woo and Ben Dummett contributed to this article.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
August 23, 2018 04:40 ET (08:40 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2018 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Everybody wants a piece of the Sky (OTCMKTS:SKYAY) pie, but the real question is, is it worth it? Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA) argues affirmatively, making its intentions very clear that it wants the European pay-TV powerhouse. But CMCSA stock being what it is, almost any other alternative plan is preferable to Comcast buying Sky.
Reservations about the deal are not unique. No matter what it wants to say about itself, Comcast is a legacy business in a rapidly changing entertainment landscape. Not only that, it’s a debt-laden legacy business. At last count, the media giant had nearly $62 billion of debt on its books. That compares unfavorably to just over $5.2 billion in cash and cash equivalents.
Buying Sky is only going to make this cash-to-debt ratio worse than it already is. Plus, rival Disney (NYSE:DIS) may appreciate Comcast conceding in the race for Twenty-First Century Fox’s (NASDAQ:FOXA) entertainment assets. However, business is war. It’s not giving up Sky without a fight.
InvestorPlace - Stock Market News, Stock Advice & Trading Tips
The reason Comcast wants Sky is the exact same one that Disney uses to justify the inevitably rich price tag: international exposure. Sky levers an enviable riches of entertainment and sports channels in the lucrative European TV market. Similar to both suiters, Sky has a production business that is currently focused on original dramas.
Additionally, Sky offers an economical streaming package, as well as a premium streaming service. Naturally, this interests both Comcast and Disney, which must address the cord-cutting phenomenon.
5 High-Growth Stocks Headed for a Brick Wall
While buying Sky addresses many “wants” for Comcast, CMCSA stock could suffer from the burden. Shares have lost more than 12% year-to-date. They could lose much more if a deal goes through.
It’s noteworthy that CMCSA stock is up over 12% since Jun. 1. It’d be a shame if management ignored this precious momentum.
CMCSA Stock Needs a Realistic, Manageable Solution
I can speak unemotionally about CMCSA stock because I’m not vested in it. But if I were, I’d imagine I would approach Comcast’s all-in strategy for Sky with severe anxiety. Yes, it would provide extensive international coverage for the media firm, but the deal is like CMCSA buying a European version of itself.
Most critics focus on the acquisition cost, which is a very valid point. But looking closer at the details, I’m not sure how CMCSA stock benefits in the longer term. Simon Murray, principal analyst at London-based Digital TV Research, believes Comcast and Sky offer an easier partnership than a Disney-Sky duo due to shared core business structures (i.e., pay-TV model).
But that’s also the reason why it’s not a favorable partnership from an investment perspective. Streaming companies like Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) have increasingly pressured this business model. Eventually, streaming services will overtake the rest of the world. Sky’s declining revenue growth rate relative to historical performances is a huge red flag in this broader context.
Consider too that the post-second quarter earnings boost for CMCSA stock resulted from unexpectedly bigger high-speed internet customer growth. But even this positive surprise is likely a temporary reprieve.
Telecom and satellite-TV giants like Verizon (NYSE:VZ), T-Mobile (NASDAQ:TMUS) and Dish (NASDAQ:DISH) will debut 5G wireless internet services to compete head-to-head with Comcast.
Industry proponents for 5G estimate a 50% U.S. home-market penetration rate by the end of 2020. If successful, that’s going to crush Comcast’s broadband offering. Even worse, advancing technologies allow relative minnows to offer 5G services for a pittance of what typical broadband providers charge.
Comcast needs something else besides its European counterpart to provide substantive, long-term solutions. Beyond that, Comcast can’t afford Sky. The problem, though, is that management thinks it can.
Comcast Has Other Options
At this point, it’s practically useless to talk about alternatives. Comcast is hell-bent on buying Sky. The company lost a high-profile bidding war with Disney over Fox. Apparently, the chief execs at Comcast and Disney have a personal rivalry. All signs point to another protracted battle.
I do want to point out, though, that CMCSA stock is, at least on paper, incredibly undervalued. Shares are trading at seven-times trailing earnings and less than 14-times forward earnings. As research firm MoffettNathanson recently argued, management should consider buying back its shares.
i hope they get SKY TRAILS/TAILS/ 'The Walt Disney Co. (DIS)'
part two/ Neither Disney CEO Robert Iger nor Fox Executive Co-Chairman Rupert Murdoch was in attendance at Friday's respective meetings.
By Annlee Ellingson – Staff Writer, L.A. Biz
Jul 27, 2018, 8:00am
https://www.bizjournals.com/losangeles/news/2018/07/27/fox-disney-shareholders-approve-blockbuster-merger.html?ana=yahoo&yptr=yahoo
The vote was scheduled to take place earlier this month but was delayed when Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ: CMCSA) entered the fray.
In December 2017, Disney (NYSE: DIS) offered $52 billion in stock for the Twentieth Century Fox Film and Television studios, along with the New York media conglomerate’s cable and international TV businesses.
Then last month Comcast, in the wake of a federal court’s ruling that AT&T could go ahead and acquire Time Warner Inc. for $85 billion, Comcast threw its hat in the ring for Fox’s assets with a $65 billion offer.
Disney then upped its bid to $71 billion, ultimately pushing Comcast out of the race.
The U.S. Department of Justice has already approved Disney’s bid, provided the studio divests Fox’s 22 regional sports networks, but it still needs to gain regulatory approval in more than a dozen global markets. The deal is expected to close next year.
Fox will spin off a portfolio of news, sports and broadcast businesses to create a “new Fox” centered on live news and sports brands, anchored by the Fox Network.
Meanwhile, Fox, Comcast and Disney are also entangled in a bidding war for European pay-television provider Sky plc.
[-chart]media.bizj.us/view/img/10989083/fox-merger*750xx.png[/chart]
how will foxa divide for foxa shareholders ????? will any of foxa be left for we shareholders ?????
partial shares to foxa from dis -
Shareholders in 21st Century Fox and The Walt Disney Co. are on board.
In short, simultaneous meetings at a Hilton hotel in Midtown Manhattan at 10 a.m. Eastern time on Friday, Fox (NASDAQ: FOXA, FOX) and Disney (NYSE: DIS) shareholders voted to approve the latter’s acquisition of Fox’s entertainment assets, moving the blockbuster merger one step closer to fruition.
Here’s a look at what Fox assets Disney will get with the acquisition, and what the new Fox will look like:
Everybody wants a piece of the Sky (OTCMKTS:SKYAY) pie, but the real question is, is it worth it? Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA) argues affirmatively, making its intentions very clear that it wants the European pay-TV powerhouse. But CMCSA stock being what it is, almost any other alternative plan is preferable to Comcast buying Sky.
Reservations about the deal are not unique. No matter what it wants to say about itself, Comcast is a legacy business in a rapidly changing entertainment landscape. Not only that, it’s a debt-laden legacy business. At last count, the media giant had nearly $62 billion of debt on its books. That compares unfavorably to just over $5.2 billion in cash and cash equivalents.
Buying Sky is only going to make this cash-to-debt ratio worse than it already is. Plus, rival Disney (NYSE:DIS) may appreciate Comcast conceding in the race for Twenty-First Century Fox’s (NASDAQ:FOXA) entertainment assets. However, business is war. It’s not giving up Sky without a fight.
InvestorPlace - Stock Market News, Stock Advice & Trading Tips
The reason Comcast wants Sky is the exact same one that Disney uses to justify the inevitably rich price tag: international exposure. Sky levers an enviable riches of entertainment and sports channels in the lucrative European TV market. Similar to both suiters, Sky has a production business that is currently focused on original dramas.
Additionally, Sky offers an economical streaming package, as well as a premium streaming service. Naturally, this interests both Comcast and Disney, which must address the cord-cutting phenomenon.
5 High-Growth Stocks Headed for a Brick Wall
While buying Sky addresses many “wants” for Comcast, CMCSA stock could suffer from the burden. Shares have lost more than 12% year-to-date. They could lose much more if a deal goes through.
It’s noteworthy that CMCSA stock is up over 12% since Jun. 1. It’d be a shame if management ignored this precious momentum.
CMCSA Stock Needs a Realistic, Manageable Solution
I can speak unemotionally about CMCSA stock because I’m not vested in it. But if I were, I’d imagine I would approach Comcast’s all-in strategy for Sky with severe anxiety. Yes, it would provide extensive international coverage for the media firm, but the deal is like CMCSA buying a European version of itself.
Most critics focus on the acquisition cost, which is a very valid point. But looking closer at the details, I’m not sure how CMCSA stock benefits in the longer term. Simon Murray, principal analyst at London-based Digital TV Research, believes Comcast and Sky offer an easier partnership than a Disney-Sky duo due to shared core business structures (i.e., pay-TV model).
But that’s also the reason why it’s not a favorable partnership from an investment perspective. Streaming companies like Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) have increasingly pressured this business model. Eventually, streaming services will overtake the rest of the world. Sky’s declining revenue growth rate relative to historical performances is a huge red flag in this broader context.
Consider too that the post-second quarter earnings boost for CMCSA stock resulted from unexpectedly bigger high-speed internet customer growth. But even this positive surprise is likely a temporary reprieve.
Telecom and satellite-TV giants like Verizon (NYSE:VZ), T-Mobile (NASDAQ:TMUS) and Dish (NASDAQ:DISH) will debut 5G wireless internet services to compete head-to-head with Comcast.
Industry proponents for 5G estimate a 50% U.S. home-market penetration rate by the end of 2020. If successful, that’s going to crush Comcast’s broadband offering. Even worse, advancing technologies allow relative minnows to offer 5G services for a pittance of what typical broadband providers charge.
Comcast needs something else besides its European counterpart to provide substantive, long-term solutions. Beyond that, Comcast can’t afford Sky. The problem, though, is that management thinks it can.
Comcast Has Other Options
At this point, it’s practically useless to talk about alternatives. Comcast is hell-bent on buying Sky. The company lost a high-profile bidding war with Disney over Fox. Apparently, the chief execs at Comcast and Disney have a personal rivalry. All signs point to another protracted battle.
I do want to point out, though, that CMCSA stock is, at least on paper, incredibly undervalued. Shares are trading at seven-times trailing earnings and less than 14-times forward earnings. As research firm MoffettNathanson recently argued, management should consider buying back its shares.
Sky May Not Be Crucial for Disney -- WSJ
Date : 07/19/2018 @ 3:02AM
Source : Dow Jones News
Stock : Twenty-First Century Fox, Inc. (FOXA)
Quote : 46.68 0.0 (0.00%) @ 8:53AM
Sky May Not Be Crucial for Disney -- WSJ
http://ih.advfn.com/p.php?pid=nmona&article=77892908
By Erich Schwartzel and Ben Fritz
This article is being republished as part of our daily reproduction of WSJ.com articles that also appeared in the U.S. print edition of The Wall Street Journal (July 19, 2018).
LOS ANGELES -- Walt Disney Co. Chief Executive Robert Iger has called Sky PLC a crown jewel of his $71 billion pursuit of 21st Century Fox Inc. assets. Now, as he decides how hard to fight for it, some on Wall Street are arguing that the European television company isn't key to Disney's future.
As part of his proposed takeover of most of Fox, Mr. Iger has the chance to immediately boost his company's international presence and new direct-to-consumer strategy by gaining ownership of Sky. Fox currently has a 39% stake in the European satellite company and internet provider and is bidding for the rest.
But Sky has also been targeted by Comcast Corp., which currently has the lead with a bid valuing Sky at $34 billion, 5% higher than Fox's most-recent offer.
A Fox takeover of Sky would essentially be done on behalf of Disney, presuming its agreement to buy Rupert Murdoch's media empire goes through and isn't topped by Comcast.
Some analysts on Wall Street say Sky, which was already in Fox's sights before the bidding war, isn't integral to Disney's future in streaming. Stepping back in favor of Comcast also offers Disney a chance reduce the debt load of its planned $71 billion acquisition of Fox.
"It's a nice-to-have, but not a must-have," said B. Riley FBR analyst Barton Crockett of Disney acquiring Sky. "Most investors I talk to would be happier if they just walked."
Fox and Wall Street Journal parent News Corp share common ownership.
Disney and Fox still could come back and top Comcast's offer for Sky, either because winning the bidding war could be advantageous for tax reasons or to save face in what has become a fierce battle between the company behind Mickey Mouse and the cable giant for media assets on both sides of the Atlantic.
Numerous analysts and media executives have speculated Disney could "split the baby" with Comcast and, in partnership with Fox, cede Sky to the cable company. Based on how the Sky auction plays out, Comcast could decide to drop its pursuit of Fox's assets, according to people familiar with the matter.
The two companies are prohibited from directly discussing such a deal, a person familiar with the matter said. Though a counteroffer for Sky would officially come from Fox, Disney has the power to veto such a move by blocking increased debt financing that would be needed, the companies said in regulatory filings Friday.
Fox could raise its bid for Sky at any point. But if it makes a move, it may wait until after a shareholder vote on its sale to Disney scheduled for July 27, so both companies have certainty about what would happen to the 39% stake.
As a satellite television service reaching about 23 million customers across five European countries, Sky would give Disney a head start in Mr. Iger's goal of transforming a traditional media company into one that distributes content it produces directly to consumers, in the mold of Netflix Inc.
Founded as a satellite TV provider in 1989, Sky has since grown to offer phone and internet service and produce original content.
As part of the Fox acquisition, Disney would acquire valuable franchises such as "Avatar" and "The Simpsons" that it could incorporate into its movie, consumer products and theme-park businesses. That library of titles is also seen as essential to the company's plans for streaming services.
Disney plans to launch a family targeted movie and TV streaming service in late 2019, complementing an ESPN-branded sports service that recently went live. If the Fox deal goes through, Disney would also assume majority control of Hulu, giving it a third digital offering, which it would populate with more adult content, the company has said.
Disney could use Sky's broadband internet offering to help launch the three streaming services in Europe. Sky has already announced plans to offer Netflix to its subscribers as part of an entertainment package.
Without Sky, Disney would have to launch its streaming services in Europe from scratch, which Mr. Iger has indicated he is prepared to do. The company doesn't have a strong record in digital businesses, though, with unsuccessful attempts to move into videogames and short-form online video, as well as a more limited video service in the U.K. called DisneyLife that has attracted few subscribers.
Mr. Iger has said another benefit of buying Sky and other Fox assets would be making his company more global.
In the fiscal year ended last October, Disney's revenue from all countries besides the U.S. and Canada was 24% of its $55.1 billion total.
On a conference call with analysts in December, Mr. Iger said that if Disney acquired Fox and all of Sky, the share of foreign revenue would jump to 40%.
Beyond Sky's strategic significance, financial considerations cut both ways.
If Disney were to acquire Fox and then sell its new minority stake in Sky to Comcast, it could reduce its cash outlay in the cash-and-stock $71 billion deal by $13 billion, Mr. Crockett said.
However, for tax advantages and the company's low cost of debt, Disney has more to gain from topping Comcast's current bid for Sky than selling the 39% stake, analysts at MoffettNathanson said in a recent report.
"From a strategic standpoint, we believe that the Sky assets are not as necessary for Disney in their path forward," the analysts wrote. However, they added, "the deal math suggests that the battle for Sky will continue moving higher."
--Shalini Ramachandran contributed to this article.
Write to Erich Schwartzel at erich.schwartzel@wsj.com and Ben Fritz at ben.fritz@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 19, 2018 02:47 ET (06:47 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2018 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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