Entertainment giant Comcast (CMCSA) has a new and unfortunate problem right now. In a time when live sports are at a premium to streaming operations, one of Comcast’s biggest draws is going dark: the NFL Network. And Comcast is trying frantically to get some part of that platform up and running before Disney (DIS) can walk away with the whole thing on ESPN. Comcast investors seem unconcerned, though, as shares notched up fractionally in Thursday morning’s trading.
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Xfinity has lost NFL Network for most of a week now, reports note, and Comcast is neck-deep in negotiations over a new carriage agreement with Disney. There are two key points that are keeping Disney and Comcast at loggerheads right now. The first is Comcast’s need for an assurance that NFL Network will still have seven exclusive NFL games through the new carriage deal. Without those, the whole point of NFL Network becomes a bit limited.
Disney, however, has the other point. Disney wants Comcast to get NFL Network out of the premium tiers and back into the more basic tiers. NFL Network was something of a draw to the higher tiers, but Disney wants the lower-tier access. Higher tiers mean a draw, and fewer per-subscriber fees since not everyone will take the offer for higher-tier access. But lower tiers mean the highest fees, and Disney wants the cash.
Scripps Back
Meanwhile, another carriage deal seems to have settled amicably, as Scripps (SSP) stations are now back on Xfinity feeds. Multiple metropolitan areas that received Scripps stations via Comcast are now getting those channels back. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.
A Scripps rep noted, “Scripps has reached an agreement with Comcast, and all Scripps stations are back on Xfinity for subscribers today. We appreciate our viewers’ patience and look forward to serving them once again on the Xfinity service with local news, weather, live sports and entertainment programming.” Comcast, for its part, promised credits to those who lost access to Scripps stations while the negotiations continued.
Is Comcast Stock a Good Buy Right Now?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Hold consensus rating on CMCSA stock based on four Buys, nine Holds and one Sell assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 22.74% loss in its share price over the past year, the average CMCSA price target of $33.04 per share implies 24.59% upside potential.
