Wednesday night, we get quarterly and annual reports from Lions Gate Entertainment (NYSE:LGF). Will the studio greet us with a raucous roar or a meek meow? Let's find out.

What analysts say:

  • Buy, sell, or waffle? Eighteen analyst firms are tracking the movie studio. Thirteen of them suggest that we buy the stock; four want us to hold tight, and one analyst recommends a sale today. In our Motley Fool CAPS investor community, it's currently a three-star stock based on input from 120 players.
  • Revenues. The Wall Street consensus points to about $322 million in revenues, up from $313 million last year. But the range of estimates swings about $20 million either way from the mean.
  • Earnings. The average estimate calls for $0.22 per share, down from $0.37 a year ago.

What management says:
These guys really don't say much. The company likes to release 10-Q and 10-K filings rather than press releases wrapped in an 8-K form, and even its promotional materials don't feature management quotes very often. Hunker down and attend to business seems to be the style here, which is fine by me.

What management does:
These results are remarkably stable for such a small movie studio. The ups and downs of box office hits and misses are mitigated by back-catalog DVD sales and direct-to-television projects -- and in fact, video sales make up more than half of the motion picture segment's revenues.

Margins

09/05

12/05

03/06

06/06

09/06

12/06

Gross

52.9%

52%

51.5%

53.8%

55.7%

56.7%

Operating

2.3%

1.3%

2.1%

3.8%

3.7%

5.5%

Net

-1.5%

-1.5%

0.6%

2.6%

2.6%

4.3%

FCF/Revenue

9.6%

7.7%

12.4%

7.7%

9.5%

12.5%
All data courtesy of Capital IQ, a division of Standard & Poor's. Data reflects trailing-12-month performance for the quarters ended in the named months.

One Fool says:
This is the largest of the "independent" movie studios, and generally competes with the other indies and the avant garde operations of the major studios. We're talking News Corp.'s (NYSE:NWS) Fox Searchlight Pictures, Disney's (NYSE:DIS) Miramax, and Time Warner's (NYSE:TWX) Warner Independent, where the $77 million gross receipts from March of the Penguins counts as a major success.

The Saw franchise has become a cash cow for Lions Gate, and the third installment rolled over from theaters into DVD sales racks in time to contribute to this quarter. Employee of the Month followed suit, and Akeelah and the Bee should still have some stubby little insect legs.

In other words, there should be plenty of sales rolling in. The year-ago period was arguably weaker, with mainly Saw 2 videos and Hostel in theaters to bring in the dough. Nothing fancy, no firecrackers burning up the charts, but a good, solid quarter.

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Fool contributor Anders Bylund holds no position in any of the companies discussed here. You can check out Anders' holdings if you like, and Foolish disclosure helps you keep the market in focus.