Yahoo Finance Why The NFL's TV Ratings Are Up & A Unicorn Footwear Startup
Welcome to the latest episode of the Full-Court Finance podcast from Zacks Investment Research where Associate Stock Strategist Ben Rains discusses why the NFL’s television ratings have jumped more than a quarter of the way through the season. The episode then shifts to Allbirds, the Silicon Valley footwear startup that just hit unicorn status as it prepares to take on the likes of Nike NKE and Lululemon LULU.
The National Football League’s TV ratings are up for the first time since 2015, according to Nielsen. The NFL’s ratings are not up across the board, but CBS’ CBS viewership numbers have jumped, while Fox’s FOXA and NBC’s CMCSA prime-time games continue to dominate linear TV. It is unclear exactly why the NFL’s ratings are up, but there are plenty of speculative reasons that are out of the league’s control for the most part.
It is also worth noting that the NFL’s digital consumption is up big compared to last year. This jump highlights Amazon’s AMZN Thursday Night Football performance, among other initiatives. Looking ahead, the NFL could see a much larger stream of revenue pour in as tech companies, such as Facebook FB continue to try to push into live streaming.
Plus, Microsoft MSFT, Pizza Hut YUM, Anheuser-Busch InBev BUD, and other major NFL sponsors are likely extremely pleased by the ratings resurgence. With that said, ESPN’s DIS Monday Night Football continues to struggle for a variety of reasons.
The episode then shifts to one of the newest Silicon Valley unicorns: Allbirds. The trendy footwear startup just recently saw its valuation hit $1.4 billion based on some recent investments. This valuation reportedly more than tripled last year’s figure for the maker of simple looking wool shoes sold at a $95 price point.
Allbirds has only been in business for a few years and has almost no brick-and-mortar presence. Yet, the company has expanded through social media marketing, word of mouth, and partnerships with the likes of Nordstrom JWN and Lululemon rival Outdoor Voices.
Looking ahead, the firm’s sustainability and comfort focus should help it compete for market share against Under Armour UAA Nike, Adidas ADDYY, and others.
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The Walt Disney Company (DIS) : Free Stock Analysis Report
CBS Corporation (CBS) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Facebook, Inc. (FB) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV (BUD) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Comcast Corporation (CMCSA) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Twenty-First Century Fox, Inc. (FOXA) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Nordstrom, Inc. (JWN) : Free Stock Analysis Report
lululemon athletica inc. (LULU) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Yum! Brands, Inc. (YUM) : Free Stock Analysis Report
NIKE, Inc. (NKE) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Adidas AG (ADDYY) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Under Armour, Inc. (UAA) : Free Stock Analysis Report
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