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Earnings Slam

July 30, 2020 | 09:25 pm | By Pat Evans

Photo Credit: Shannon Heupel via Imagn

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WWE posted a better-than-expected $55.7 million in operating income in its second quarter as lower operating costs helped minimize a decline in revenue due to a loss of live events. The company said it had $223.4 million in revenue in the quarter, down 17% from $268.9 million a year earlier.

A positive earnings report likely comes as a relief for Vince McMahon. The WWE chairman and CEO has had a rough couple months stemming from WWE ratings dropping and his $200 million investment in the relaunch of the now defunct XFL.

Despite a lack of competition from live sports, WWE’s Raw averaged 500,000 fewer viewers in the second quarter than the same period last year, and 1.1 million less than 2018. WWE’s stock price had declined nearly 30% in 2020 as of Thursday’s market close.

Key WWE Q2 Earnings Takeaways:

— $223.4 million in revenue, down 17% year-over-year.

— $55.7 million in income, up from $17.1 million in the same quarter last year.

— Ecommerce revenues nearly doubled to $12.6 million, offsetting losses from sales at 76 canceled events.

— WWE Network paid subscribers declined 1.5% to 1.66 million.

— Digital video views jumped 10% to 9.9 billion, with hours consumed up 15% to 374 million.