Lionsgate Quarterly Revenue Up, Losses Widen, Starz Global Streaming Subs At 19.7M

deadline.com:

Lionsgate posted revenue of $885 million for its fiscal third quarter ended in Dec., up from $836 million a year ago but below Wall Street forecasts of just under $1 billion.

A net loss of 20 cents,  a shares was in line. The stock is off about 5% in late trading.Starz net global streaming subscribers were up 1.7M in the sequential quarter at 19.7 million, up 44% year over year.

Starz revenue and segment profit were still impacted by Covid-related production delays, but programming is now back on trackThe numbers hit as the company sits squarely in the center of a media M&A media storm, including a potential acquisition of STX Entertainment and a search for strategic alternatives for Starz.

The Starz initiative was announced in Nov. and put the entire company in play, meaning it could be a buyer or seller at a time when demand for premium content has never been higher.Management feels Lionsgate shares are terribly undervalued and that separating out Starz will highlight its value.As for STX, it was recently sold by Eros Jahm Najafi’s Phoenix-based The Najafi Companies for $173 million in a deal that included a 45-day window for alternative proposals.