© Reuters. TKO Group Holdings (TKO) started at neutral by MoffettNathanson as stock ‘fairly valued’
TKO Group Holdings (TKO) shares were started at Neutral with a $95 per share price target by MoffettNathanson analysts on Monday.
Analysts told investors that following the creation of TKO, investors must weigh whether media rights at both WWE and UFC can surpass high expectations.
“The Netflix-WWE rights deal is a significant strategic step forward by limiting TKO’s exposure to the disruption of linear TV while aligning with the leading global streaming player,” analysts stated.
Last week, it was announced that WWE and Netflix had agreed on a long-term partnership that will see WWE’s flagship weekly program, Raw, streamed on Netflix.
However, MoffettNathanson questioned whether the U.S. sports rights bubble is starting to pop.
“We think the sports landscape has evolved meaningfully over the past year and even more recently after the Disney/Charter renewal, at least for
traditional media,” added analysts. “We expect all sports rights already on flagship ESPN (i.e. NFL, college football, NBA) to play a critical role in this next iteration of sports distribution, but where does that leave secondary rights like the UFC?”
“We forecast a +40% AAV increase for the UFC’s domestic rights, yet we see downside risk if, in fact, ESPN looks to be more cost-conscious,” said analysts.
Analysts acknowledged the “unique nature” of TKO’s sports and entertainment programming and the ability to capture passionate fandom with live events and experiences, stating it “remains a rare opportunity for public market investors,” they also said with the UFC risk and NFLX deal already secured, they feel the stock is fairly valued.
TKO shares are down just over 1% premarket following the recent news that Vince McMahon has resigned from the organization after sexual misconduct and sex trafficking allegations.