Starz will no doubt be happy with its first half-week of trading results as an independent entity. Now officially split off from the larger Lionsgate group, these represent its first days as a stand-alone public company. To tell us more we have entertainment lawyer Brandon Blake, of Blake & Wang P.A.
Successful First Trading Day
Starz listed on the Nasdaq (under the STARZ ticker) at $11.20, and saw an initial rise of 40%. After 8 years under the Lionsgate banner, Starz split off formally last week as the final regulatory processes came to a close.
These gains are certainly a ray of light in a stock market facing serious headwinds from uncertain governmental economic policies and escalation in the tariff wars.
Recovery for Entertainment Stocks?
While we’ve seen generally soft or mixed results from many of the key entertainment companies listing their Q1 results, especially with that turbulence added to the mix, we also saw the general entertainment stock sector see incremental recoveries last week, even after the somewhat controversial announcement of a potential “foreign film tariff” in the works.
It’s common for newly listed stocks to see some optimism. Starz, however, bolstered by some exciting key first-look and library deals from its once-parent, Lionsgate Studios, as well as an already proven track record of successes, certainly makes for an appealing stock among the current markets. Most of its revenue is now derived from streaming.
It seems Wall Street, at least, has confidence in Starz’s standalone streaming strategy, even amid the wider market challenges. With somewhere in the region of 28M subscribers globally, could this be the rise of a new boutique premium streaming service challenger? For now, we’ll have to wait and see, but it’s looking positive for Starz.
Film and Television 