Remember when Mark Ruffalo came out against entertainment giant Paramount Skydance (PSKY), taking aim at its merger with Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD)? More than a few out there thought it was a case of biting the hand that feeds him, and Ruffalo believes that Paramount may have already exacted vengeance, adding Ruffalo to a list of banned actors. Investors were not happy, meanwhile, and sent Paramount shares sliding down fractionally in the closing minutes of Monday’s trading.
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Ruffalo recently appeared on the “I’ve Had It” podcast, where he noted that he believed he was already on an internal Paramount blacklist after remarks he made nearly two weeks ago. Ruffalo, backed up by Economic Liberties Project director Matt Stoller, called on state attorneys general to fight back against the Paramount/Warner deal, noting that “…promises by the ultrarich” were inherently untrustworthy.
Interestingly, the essay Ruffalo wrote with Stoller featured references to the idea that actors and filmmakers were likely afraid to join his call against Paramount due to the possibility that Paramount would retaliate. Now, Ruffalo seems to be suggesting that Paramount has done exactly that, against him, and that this is further reason to oppose the merger.
The Trek Network?
We also know that Star Trek is easily one of Paramount’s biggest franchises. And we also know that Paramount has had its eye on television networks for a long time. In fact, Paramount had a stake in the DuMont Television Network back in the 1940s, before ultimately releasing its own first network, the Paramount Television Network, back in 1948 before closing it in 1956. Paramount went on from there, delivering United Paramount Network (UPN) in the late 1990s.
But between PTN and UPN came PTS, the Paramount Television Service, in 1978. And reports noted that Paramount wanted to use a Trek series to kick off that network as well, known as Star Trek: Phase II. Star Trek: Phase II eventually got turned into Star Trek: The Motion Picture, but it proves that Paramount has been banking on Star Trek for a long, long time now.
Is Paramount Stock a Good Buy Right Now?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Moderate Sell consensus rating on PSKY stock based on one Buy, five Holds and four Sells assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 16.04% loss in its share price over the past year, the average PSKY price target of $11.38 per share implies 15.66% upside potential.
