Box Office Strength Continues

It seems as though everyone is going to the movies to take their minds off the lousy stock market. The weekend box office rose 36% as The Bourne Ultimatum earned $70.1 million, the biggest ever opening for a movie in August and the 28th best opening weekend ever. Bourne also had a bigger opening than […]

Looking More Favorably on Dreamworks Animation

Paul Allen announced that he is dramatically reducing his remaining position in Dreamworks Animation. Following up on the sale of 12 million shares last November, Allen will now sell an additional 15-17 million shares leaving him with just 6 million shares. Of the shares to be sold, 10-12 million will be sold in a secondary […]

August 2007 Model Signals

There were no changes of Northlake’s Market Cap and Style models for August. The signals continue to be Large Cap and Growth. The large cap signal remains one of the strongest in the close to 400 monthly readings I have going back to 1980. The growth signal move from weak to solid this month and […]

Virgin Media Delays Sale

Virgin Media announced that it was delaying the sale of the company. The brief press release indicated that financial and strategic buyers continue to express interest but unfavorable debt market conditions make delaying a sale in shareholders best interests. On July 2nd, Virgin Media received a proposal to take the company private. The buyer was […]

Ukraine Shortfall Pressures CETV Despite Otherwise Great Results

Central European Media Enterprises (CETV) reported second quarter revenues and EBITDA above estimates. However, the composition of the results caused concern among investors leading to a sharp 5.4% decline in the stock on above average volume. I think investors overreacted and remain very bullish on CETV shares. I was adding to positions in some client […]

Disney Earnings Growth Continues Unabated

Disney (DIS) reported another strong quarter. EPS of 58 cents exceeded the 55 cent consensus estimate with revenues in line with expectations at $9.05 billion. The upside came from margins with Broadcasting being unusually strong with operating income up 127%. Cable Networks also had higher margins than analysts were expecting. The only shortfall was operating […]

Central European Media Enterprises Earnings Preview

Central European Media Enterprises (CETV) reports second quarter earnings tomorrow morning. CETV is the largest TV broadcaster dedicated to serving Central and Eastern Europe and owns leading TV stations in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Romania, Slovenia, Croatia, and Ukraine. CETV is a sizable US company controlled by Ronald Lauder and Apax Partners. The current market […]

Disney 3Q07 Earnings Preview

Disney (DIS) faces a tough comparison when it reports its 3Q07. Projected EPS of 55 cents are up just 4% vs. a year ago. Analysts have long expected this to be the toughest comparison so it should not come as a surprise. Given ongoing concerns that DIS’ best financial performance is behind it, the report […]

Good Quarter, Bad Reaction For Rogers Communications

Rogers Communications (RCI) reported 2Q07 earnings on July 31st. The results were at the upper end of expectations and management raised the high end of the guidance range for many key metrics. Nevertheless, the shares traded off as much as 4% initially, cut the loss in half as the conference call was occurring, and closed […]

The Simpsons Drive Huge Gain at the Box Office

A bull market existed at one place over the weekend: the nation’s movie theatres. Thanks to a huge opening for The Simpsons Movie and good holds for all the other top movies, the weekend box office rose 45% vs. the same weekend a year ago. Since June 29th, when the second quarter started for the […]