Macquarie Says The WWE Trade Is 'Looking Tired'

In a report published Tuesday, Macquarie Research analyst James Clement suggested investors "sell the news" after World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. WWE reports its post-WrestleMania conference call scheduled for March 30th. According to Clement, based on historical pay-per-view trends before the February 2014 launch of the WWE Network, it is likely the company could announce 1.5 million subscribers. The analyst added that it is only likely that the subscriber count will drop "precipitously" in April and May, consistent with historical seasonality and that enthusiasm for the stock will be "short-lived." WWE has already disclosed that it will discuss 2015 programming plans for the network during the upcoming conference. The analyst stated that a compelling slate of new and original shows could "assuage some investor concerns about attrition" and that its user base may wait for reviews of the new shows before committing to the network and spending money. Bottom line, Clement stated: "In our view, the risk to being long WWE ahead of the subscriber print is that no matter how favorable that WrestleMania subscriber number ultimately is, traders will immediately have to focus on the prospect of post-Mania attrition, which PPV history would suggest could be as much as 700,000 subs." Shares remain Neutral rated with a $14 price target.