Roku shares plunges 16% after powerplant manufacturer has broken revenue gains
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Shares in Roku plunged on Thursday after the streaming device company released third-quarter results that missed Wall Street's expectation after several quarters of blowout growth.
Roku reported a loss in the third quarter of 22 cents per share, worse than the 18 cents expected analysts surveyed by FactSet. Roku had beaten analysts' expectations of quarterly earnings in seven of the last eight reports.
"ROKU broke a series of 201[ads1]9 strokes that reported a mixed 3Q and a frankly surprising mixed 4Q despite its (temporary) leadership position in the distribution of Disney +, Said Pivotal Research analyst Jeffrey Wlodarczak." We are not surprised … the fallback in the aftermarket stock as an undeniably rich 12 + X & # 39; 20 earnings multiple simply doesn't leave much room for anything but material beats. "
Pivotal has a Roku seller rating with a $ 60 price target. RBC Capital similarly pointed out Roku's advantage as a distributor in that it derives revenue from the streaming services of Apple, Disney, Amazon and Netflix, but unlike Wlodarczak, RBC's Mark Mahaney has a better performance rating on Roku as he sees it as one of the the best shows on ad-supported "over-the-top services," saying "The Streaming Wars catalyst is not yet showing in numbers, but we continue to believe that ROKU will be of significant benefit."
N eedham analyst Laura Martin noted Roku's fourth-quarter forecast "was disappointing," though she said the company "wouldn't be surprised" if the company's next-quarter results came in "well above its guidance." Needham has a buy rating on Roku with a price target of $ 150.
Rokus shares fell 16% in trading from the previous close of $ 141.05 per share. The company's stock has risen this year, climbing 360% through Wednesday's close.
– CNBC's Michael Bloom contributed to this report.
