Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.
What: Shares of DreamWorks Animation Skg Inc (DWA) were waking up from a nightmare today, falling as much as 15% after a disappointing earnings report.
So what: The animation studio said revenue fell 22.8% to $204.3 million as DVD sales of its most recent release, Turbo, were slower than expected. Analysts had expected revenue of $223.2 million, but the company still beat earnings estimates by a penny with adjusted profits of $0.32 in spite of the revenue miss. CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg looked forward to 2014, saying the company has "three great feature releases lined up," including Mr. Peabody & Sherman, How to Train Your Dragon 2, and Home, and that it will continue to invest in its television, consumer products, and digital and location-based entertainment businesses.
Now what: Movie studios are notoriously risky businesses and are often only as valuable as their latest release. DreamWorks is a respected brand within the industry and has turned out a number of hits. A new agreement with Netflix also presents another revenue stream for DreamWorks, but it won't release another movie on the streaming service until the fourth quarter. Risk-seeking investors may want to take a gamble on DreamWorks, but generally, I avoid stocks with such unpredictable revenue streams.
