Latest news with #DougCreutz
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Video game sector: Tariff impacts, GTA 6 release, EA outlook
TD Cowen senior media and entertainment analyst Doug Creutz joins Market Domination with Yahoo Finance Markets Reporter Josh Schafer to discuss the state of the video game sector as consumers pull back on spending and tariff impacts continue to hit industries. To watch more expert insights and analysis on the latest market action, check out more Market Domination. Taking a look at the video game industry, layoffs, tariffs, and a budget conscious consumer weighing on the gaming space. But our next guest says 2025 is shaping up to be a solid year for video games. We're navigating how to play the sector with Yahoo Finance Playbook. Joining me now is Doug Creutz, senior analyst at TD Cowen. He covers media, entertainment, and video games. Doug, just give me a lay of the land here when it comes to the overall video game space right now. What is the major trend that you're sort of watching and the state of play as we do know that the US consumer has sort of come into question here, right, as far as spending goes? Yeah, I mean, the consumer may have come into question overall, but now that all the the console manufacturers have reported, uh, we know that consumer spending on console video games actually grew 8% in Q2, which was quite healthy. Obviously, Nintendo launched the Switch 2 and that helped, but spending was actually really robust on PlayStation as well. Uh, they grew 17% in constant currency terms. So, uh, while while the consumer may be a little stressed overall, they they they seem to still be engaged in in video games quite quite quite handsomely. And and Doug, the other main macro headline that video the video game industry is, of course, right in the center of is tariffs, right? And what have we learned from these companies as the calls went along as far as tariff impact and perhaps who's maybe most exposed to tariffs and where that's the the largest risk? Yeah, I mean, obviously, the the hardware manufacturers have had some some tariff risk. Uh, I I'd say thus far, they've been able to navigate it pretty well. Um, they do have sort of diversified supply chains. Uh, they they all have options at least to go outside of China for their hardware or at least Sony and Nintendo do. Um, so so they've been able to stay the course. Sony actually, uh, in its guidance in May had sort of given a range of impacts from tariffs and they actually walked that range down. Uh, that that's not going to be as severe as they they thought it might be. Um, as far as the video games software makers, there really isn't any impact at all. I mean, they're making digital goods. Uh, you know, except unless you're talking about like a third order impact on overall consumer spending, it doesn't affect their their process at all. So it's actually a a pretty good industry, uh, as far as having, you know, less tariff risk than some others. Doug, I want to zoom in on a specific name here because this one always catches my eye because I'm a fan of the video game, grant that part of it, right? Take two. And I'm curious, GTA 6 supposed to come out next year, right? Seems like a key catalyst for the stock. But we've heard GTA 6 was supposed to come out before, right? And there's sort of been questions about when exactly is the game finally going to hit the market. Is that a risk for Take Two looking out over the next year that this game gets delayed again and that's something that's sort of been priced into the stock and then, you know, that weighs eventually ends up weighing on shares. How do you see that part of the the GTA story? Yeah, I I sometimes joke that every two months that go by, we get one month closer to GTA 6. I I I think the May date is the real date. It has been delayed, you know, sort of explicitly, uh, you know, once or twice, and I think internally it's probably been delayed more than that. This is a this is a big game. I think they're trying to do some things that have probably never been done before in a video game. Uh, and you know, they they want to let Rockstar cook and make sure, you know, as Strauss Zelnick, the CEO, said yesterday, it it's not good enough to make good games anymore. You have to make great games if you want to be successful in the market. And he's right. Um, but it does feel like May is the real date that we're actually going to get it and and and and see how it is. And Doug, we're we're going to go down my childhood video game shelf here. I also used to play Madden a lot. Love the game, right? Of course, it's the middle of August, that game coming out. Let's talk EA a little bit here. You have a buy on the on the stock. You see some upside within EA. What do you think is driving that and what are kind of the the key growth drivers you're watching over the next 12 months when it comes to EA? Yeah, so, you know, as you sort of imply, EA is very well known for its sports titles, Madden, uh, FC, more recently college football's been a big success for them. And that's been a great engine of growth for them over over decades, and it it continues to be an engine of growth. I think what's interesting right now, though, is they've got another game coming out in October called Battlefield 6, uh, which they've spent a lot of resources in development. Four different studios, it's being the effort's being headed by uh Vincent Zampello, who is one of the original developers of Call of Duty. Um, this is this is a big investment for them. Uh, I I I think the the early sort of advanced notice of it has been very good. It's actually in beta test right now, and it's an open beta, it seems to be going quite well. People are excited about it. Call of Duty is a little long in the tooth at this point and, you know, maybe not getting quite the attention from Microsoft that it used to get from Activision. So, I think there's a big opportunity for EA to take some meaningful share in the shooter genre, which is the biggest genre in the video game market, at least as far as consoles and PC go. Uh, and for that to be an additional growth driver. And the stock has reacted, I think people are starting to catch on to the fact that they may have something with Battlefield that could really work. Something we'll be keeping an eye on come the fall. Appreciate you joining us today, Doug. Of course. Thank you. Related Videos What is CPI? 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Yahoo
04-08-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Disney earnings: 2 things that could change this analyst's rating
Disney (DIS) is set to report earnings on Wednesday before markets open. TD Cowen managing director for media and entertainment Doug Creutz outlines what he'll be looking for in the results, including the two things that Disney could announce that could change his Hold rating on the stock. To watch more expert insights and analysis on the latest market action, check out more Market Catalysts. Zooming in on the upcoming earnings this week, Doug. What is your biggest question gonna be for the company sort of going in, uh, and awaiting those numbers? Yeah, I think the question three months ago would have been, you know, how the park's doing. Uh, particularly with Comcast Epic Park opening. You know, there was some concern with that cut into Disney's attendance. I think Epic has done well, but it hasn't done so wildly well that you you would be really concerned that Disney was seeing, you know, a major impact, not that there won't be an impact, but I think everyone assumed there'd be some impact. Um, and I also, three months ago, people were more concerned about macro, and that that seems to have receded at least a bit. I think the the more important question is, you know, they had a summer with four big movies. One of them, Lilo and Stitch, the the remake, did very well. Um, they had an animated movie, Elio, which did incredibly poorly, and will almost certainly be a meaningful write-down. Uh, it's another original IP film that they have made that hasn't done well, uh, on the animated side. And it's not just them, it's the entire industry. Original IP animated films are struggling. They also had, I think maybe most concerningly, two well-reviewed Marvel films. Um, one, uh, uh, Fantastic Four, which had a good opening weekend, but really had a major falloff in the second weekend. Um, and and I think in general, there's gotta be some concern about the trajectory of the overall Marvel franchise, and and whether it's lost a lot of the interest that it used to have and was a key driver for them. Yeah, I think we were a big Marvel household, and now we've got a little Marvel fatigue, I have to admit. Um, and and when you look at that that parks question, how do you think they will be doing given, to your point, the competition from the newly opened park in Florida? Yeah, look, the parks business has been functioning very well. They had a little bit of a soft patch last summer, but it seems to have recovered. Uh, you know, again, I think Orlando will probably be a touch slower this quarter because of the Epic opening, but not so much that it's gonna have anybody concerned. You know, they've got, um, multiple cruise ships are gonna be coming to market over the next few years. That's an opportunity for them there to have additional growth. Uh, I I think the parks business is good, right? It's gonna continue to be good, sort of barring any major recession. I I think everybody knows that, right? It's sort of, I don't know as an investor if you get paid for the parks business being good just because that's kind of baked into the stock. Uh, and speaking about being baked into the stock, you've got a hold rating on it, $123 price target. What has to change for you to get more bullish on Disney? Well, I think one thing is we kind of need to know who's gonna replace Bob Iger. Yeah, small, small thing, right, Doug? Yeah, yeah, that remains a very open question. You know, will it be somebody internally? Will it be somebody from outside the company? Uh, we don't know. And he's, you know, he's supposed to be handing over the reins next year. Um, he's has he has been supposed to hand over the reins many times in the past, and, uh, you know, he's still CEO after after some time off. So, we'll see. I think that's a really big, important thing, and sort of whoever does replace him, what's their vision for Disney over the next 10 years? It won't necessarily be the same as Bob Iger's. Um, and then I think, you know, it's it's the media business, right? It's how how much can they grow Disney Plus profitability? I think that they can get it higher, but can they get it higher fast enough to offset the diminishing profits of linear? I think that's also, uh, another very open question that they have not been able to answer in any in any concrete way.
Globe and Mail
26-07-2025
- Business
- Globe and Mail
Analysts Offer Insights on Communication Services Companies: Paramount Global Class B (PARA) and IMAX (IMAX)
Analysts have been eager to weigh in on the Communication Services sector with new ratings on Paramount Global Class B (PARA – Research Report) and IMAX (IMAX – Research Report). Elevate Your Investing Strategy: Take advantage of TipRanks Premium at 50% off! Unlock powerful investing tools, advanced data, and expert analyst insights to help you invest with confidence. Paramount Global Class B (PARA) TD Cowen analyst Doug Creutz reiterated a Hold rating on Paramount Global Class B today and set a price target of $14.00. The company's shares closed last Thursday at $13.26. According to Creutz is a 5-star analyst with an average return of 14.8% and a 65.8% success rate. Creutz covers the NA sector, focusing on stocks such as Live Nation Entertainment, Starz Entertainment Corp, and Warner Music Group. ;'> Paramount Global Class B has an analyst consensus of Moderate Sell, with a price target consensus of $12.00, which is a -9.0% downside from current levels. In a report issued on July 22, Needham also maintained a Hold rating on the stock. IMAX (IMAX) In a report released today, Patrick Sholl from Barrington reiterated a Buy rating on IMAX, with a price target of $32.00. The company's shares closed last Thursday at $28.29. According to Sholl is a 2-star analyst with an average return of 0.6% and a 58.8% success rate. Sholl covers the NA sector, focusing on stocks such as Paramount Global Class B, Clear Channel Outdoor, and Nexstar Media Group. ;'> Currently, the analyst consensus on IMAX is a Strong Buy with an average price target of $33.11, which is a 13.7% upside from current levels. In a report issued on July 16, TR | OpenAI – 4o also upgraded the stock to Buy with a $31.00 price target.
Business Insider
12-07-2025
- Business
- Business Insider
Comcast (CMCSA) Gets a Buy from TD Cowen
In a report released on July 7, Doug Creutz from TD Cowen maintained a Buy rating on Comcast, with a price target of $45.00. The company's shares closed today at $34.97. Elevate Your Investing Strategy: Take advantage of TipRanks Premium at 50% off! Unlock powerful investing tools, advanced data, and expert analyst insights to help you invest with confidence. Make smarter investment decisions with TipRanks' Smart Investor Picks, delivered to your inbox every week. According to TipRanks, Creutz is a 5-star analyst with an average return of 15.1% and a 65.46% success rate. Creutz covers the Communication Services sector, focusing on stocks such as Playtika Holding, Roblox, and Comcast. In addition to TD Cowen, Comcast also received a Buy from Citi's Michael Rollins in a report issued on July 9. However, on June 24, Wells Fargo maintained a Sell rating on Comcast (NASDAQ: CMCSA).
Yahoo
30-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Why Did Elio's Box Office Bomb? Wall Street Analyst Weighs In
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. No one can be certain what's going to hit or not on any cinematic calendar, which is something we're witnessing in real time on the 2025 movie schedule. While 28 Years Later seems to have exceeded last weekend's estimates, Elio's record-low opening for a Pixar film has animation fans wondering why Pixar's latest couldn't soar among the stars. To answer that question requires an expert, and not an astronomer or a xenobiologist. No, for this query, we need to turn to the world of finance; and Deadline did just that. Speaking with TD Cowan analyst Doug Creutz, the publication was able to discuss the most recent example of Disney/Pixar's struggles in the market. In his estimation, Creutz sees the animation industry sitting on the edge of this particular paradox: We expect movie studios to react to this clear trend by greenlighting fewer original IP animated films (don't blame film execs, blame audiences.) The issue, of course, is that without new hit properties, a studio cannot grow its IP portfolio. This could be particularly problematic for Disney, which depends on its animated film/parks/consumer products flywheel to help drive overall company growth. That last segment is something that further analysis presented within the report above. As we've seen through upcoming changes to the Magic Kingdom, properties like Cars are important to help drive innovation at Disney Parks sites around the world. Which also means more opportunities for merchandise sales, and of course more sequels. So if another chapter in Lightning McQueen's saga is announced in the near future don't be too surprised. But one can't merely depend on the hits to push such reinventions; especially since Elio could be a pretty awesome addition to Epcot Center. Provided it gathers some steam before becoming a streaming Disney+ subscription offering. Which circles us back to the core understanding that's existed at the heart of this issue since day one: audiences need to support these sorts of projects, in order to make sure they keep happening. Disney Plus + Hulu Bundle: From $10.99 A MonthSure, you could sign up for a solo Disney+ subscription. But for $10.99 a month, you could upgrade to the Disney+/Hulu Bundle, and vastly expand your streaming world! This is a small but mighty bundle. With the libraries ofStar Wars, Marvel, and Disney/Pixar included, and the option to go ad-free for $19.99 a month, it's an offer that's truly out of this world! View Deal As one would expect, Doug Creutz cited the COVID-19 lockdown as a catalyst for what this report called the 'enormously wide' divide between the performances of original movies and legacy-quels. Which feels somewhat of a natural side effect, as the streaming boom has enhanced the potential of something like the upcoming Pixar movie Toy Story 5 through easy access to the previous films and specials. All of this ultimately ties into Pixar chief creative officer Pete Docter's feelings on Elio's opening, which show the balance that needs to be struck between those two halves. While it's not necessarily a bad thing that the adventures of Woody and Buzz continue, there's still a need for original hits to keep creativity - and business dollars - flowing. It will be interesting to see if Elio can play the long game as well as 2023's Elemental did; but of course it's too early to tell. Disney/Pixar's alien epic is currently showing in theaters, for all who are curious to experience its interstellar warmth.
