Earnings Preview: What To Key On When Time Warner, Viacom And Others Report This Week
—Time Warner (NYSE: TWX) Inc.
When: Wednesday (before the market opens)
Key estimates: consensus estimates are net revenue of $6.8 billion, and earnings-per-share (EPS) of $0.46.
What to look for: Many will be watching how AOL ad revenue fared during the quarter - most analysts expect it to decline around 20 percent, which we estimate could imply display ad declines in excess of 30 percent. AOL has had difficulty turning its traffic into revenue; the company recently hired Google (NSDQ: GOOG) ad-sales vet Tim Armstrong to help change that, so results below these already low expectations or indications that conditions remain poor in the second quarter 2009 would indicate the company has a long way to go to turn itself around. (Of course, the opposite applies in the case of a positive surprise).
Time Inc. is in an equally precarious position. Analysts expect its ad revenue to decline more than 25 percent during the quarter. The company has recently made aggressive moves to improve results at Time Inc., slashing the workforce and announcing it would experiment with paid online magazines. But worse-than-expected results may lead some to call for more drastic measures.
Viacom (NYSE: VIA), IAC (NSDQ: IACI) and more, after the jump
—Viacom
When: Thursday (after the market closes)
Key estimates: consensus estimates are net revenue of $3 billion, and earnings-per-share (EPS) of $0.30.
What to look for: Will Viacom’s model of dual revenue streams—from subscriptions and advertising—continue to perform better than that of broadcast TV? Consensus estimates look for 5 percent declines from cable during the first quarter of 2009, which assumes 11 percent declines in U.S. advertising and 1 percent declines in international advertising. Most analysts expect sales of the video game Rock Band to decline 25 percent in the quarter as consumers increasingly tighten their belts.
—Interactive Corp.
When: Wednesday (before the market closes)
Key estimates: consensus estimates are net revenue of $330 million, and earnings-per-share (EPS) of $0.01.
What to look for:After Yahoo (NSDQ: YHOO), Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT), and AOL have reported, there may not be too many surprises left with display advertising - the three control the lion’s share of online display advertising. But don’t forget IAC, which earns over a billion in annual revenue. Most analysts expect display revenue to decline 20 percent to 25 percent during the quarter, but don’t be too surprised if it comes in slightly worse.
Other companies to report this week:
Monday
Baidu (NSDQ: BIDU) (After Market)
Tuesday
Dreamworks (After Market)
Interpublic (Before Market)
McGraw-Hill (NYSE: MHP) (Before Market)
Wednesday
Akamai (NSDQ: AKAM) (After Market)
IAC (Before Market)
Meredith (NYSE: MDP) (Before Market)
Time Warner (Before Market)
Thursday
Belo (NYSE: BLC) (Before Market)
Comcast (NSDQ: CMCSA) (Before Market)
Comscore (NSDQ: SCOR) (After Market)
MSLO (Before Market)
Motorola (NYSE: MOT) (Before Market)
Viacom (Time Not Supplied)
Friday
Washington Post (NYSE: WPO) (Time Not Given)
Posted In: Advertising, Entertainment, Media & Publishing, Companies, IAC, Time Warner, Viacom
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