Thursday, April 19, 2012

There's Blood In The...Ring?

Many moons ago, World Wrestling Entertainment was discussed on this site for its seemingly unsustainable dividend. Since then, the dividend has been cut, and the shares trade for less than half of what they did then! But WWE actually has a pretty consistent core business that throws off cash flow from wrestling events (tickets and tv revenue) and the licensing of its brands for games, toys etc. At its current price, WWE trades at a single digit multiple to its average free cash flow, despite a huge cash balance.

Unfortunately, a number of poor investments in film and a new cable channel (that has not yet launched) are crimping current results, but the pessimism surrounding these investments may offer long term investors a great entry point into the stock. Chasing Bruce has a great write-up on the company for those interested. He covers such items as WWE's moat (which may have shrunk slightly due to the popularity of mixed martial arts, but which is still very strong) and management's intentions with regard to some of its non-core businesses if they do not show adequate returns.

One thing Chasing Bruce did not cover is just how colourful the company's CEO is. He's not afraid to get in front of the WWE fan base and mix it up with the talent. Watch how he treats some of the independent contractors that used to work for the company:



Disclosure: No position

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