WWE stock is taking a bigger beating today than the biggest jobber on the roster.
WWE and NBC Universal announced a pending TV deal yesterday but monetary and length details were withheld. Investors acted accordingly and now WWE stock is dropping faster than John Cena’s popularity.
Even though WWE chairman and owner Vince McMahon talked up the deal like a PPV match, the pending deal failed to impress. The biggest issue — according to Forbes — is the albatross that’s dubbed the WWE Network.
Of additional concern: the company’s WWE Network —McMahon’s attempt to bring wrestling “over the top,”industry speak for online streaming — needs to add 1.3 million to 1.4 million global subscribers in order to offset the Network’s cannibalization of WWE’s pay-per-view revenue, but first quarter subscriber numbers indicate that the Network has gained just 670,000, results that put the company on track for an operating income loss.
As of the time of this posting, WWE stock was down 50%. This news is like a Tombstone Piledriver to Vince’s wallet.
The stock’s losses have also had a body-blow impact to Vince McMahon’s personal wealth: according to the FORBES real time wealth tracker, McMahon has lost $357 million, nearly a third of his fortune, since Thursday’s closing bell.
This is turning into an ugly match.
[via Forbes]