Top Entertainment Stocks To Watch In October 2021
As the broader stock market appears to lack direction, entertainment stocks continue to show promise. We saw the entertainment industry evolve and flourish during the global pandemic. Many people who usually seek entertainment outdoors were forced to explore indoor options due to lockdown restrictions. Naturally, gaming and streaming companies saw a spike in users and this has motivated companies within the industry to step up their game. In fact, even the pioneers of entertainment streaming such as Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX) are branching out their offerings. This week, Netflix announced that it is rolling out its mobile games in selected European markets.
On top of that, Netflix also bought Night School Studio, making it the company’s first video game studio. Well, this move would crush any doubts about Netflix’s intention to explore the gaming market. So, if you’re a subscriber within the region, you will have access to these games as part of your subscription. Another streaming giant that isn’t resting on its laurels would be Spotify Technology (NYSE: SPOT). The company will be changing the name of its advertising business to Spotify Advertising. Spotify hopes to expand its advertising revenues by attracting small and medium-sized businesses to advertise on its platform. All this goes to show that the entertainment industry is highly competitive and the best is yet to come. With that in mind, would these top entertainment stocks be a frontrunner in the stock market today?
Best Entertainment Stocks To Watch Heading Into October 2021
- Walt Disney Co (NYSE: DIS)
- Electronic Arts Inc (NASDAQ: EA)
- Sony Group Corp (NYSE: SONY)
- ViacomCBS Inc (NASDAQ: VIAC)
Walt Disney
First, on the list, we have everyone’s childhood favorite, Walt Disney. Today, the company is now a worldwide entertainment company. While the global pandemic poses great challenges for the company, it was able to navigate through the pandemic successfully. The introduction of Disney+ as a streaming platform came at the right time around two years ago. It is now one of the company’s main revenue streams as it challenges Netflix as one of the top entertainment streaming platforms in the world.
Disney+ has been a huge success for the company thus far. So much so that it has decided to celebrate its second year anniversary across the company. The company unveiled that its subscribers will also get to enjoy the brand’s real world celebrations. For instance, Disney Parks and Resorts around the world will roll out the blue carpet for Disney+ fans. On top of that, talents across Disney owned channels that include ESPN+, Hulu, ABC and many more will also join in the celebration.
Furthermore, Disney has also partnered with Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) to launch an Alexa-powered voice assistant at Disney’s theme park hotels. This comes with a paid feature that allows customers to interact with Disney characters at home. The feature is expected to launch next year and users will be able to interact with Disney characters with the ‘Hey, Disney!’ voice command. With what seems like an exciting time ahead for the company, would you add DIS stock to your portfolio?
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Electronic Arts
Following that, we have the digital interactive entertainment company, Electronic Arts (EA). Essentially, the company specializes in gaming content across a range of platforms. This includes game consoles, personal computers (PCs), mobile phones and tablets. Chances are, you would have heard of games such as The Sims, Apex Legends, FIFA, and Star Wars. And these games are part of the company’s broad intellectual portfolio.
Last Monday, the company and AT&T’s (NYSE: T) WarnerMedia announced the completion of EA’s acquisition of Warner Bros. Game’s Playdemic, Ltd. Playdemic is a premier mobile gaming company known for its award-winning game Golf Clash. With more than 80 million downloads globally to date, it is one of the leading mobile games in the U.S. and U.K. Hence, this acquisition will further grow the company’s network of nearly half a billion players around the world.
In addition, EA and LEARFIELD announced today the return of LevelNext, with competition kicking off first with EA SPORTS Madden NFL 22. This is a highly-anticipated collegiate esports league that gets the fans buzzing. For those interested, registration is now open to college students at more than 2,500 schools nationwide. With all these in mind, would you consider EA stock a top entertainment stock to watch?
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Sony Group
Sony is a company that engages in the development, design, production, and sale of various electronic equipment, instruments and devices. Its products are used by consumers, professionals and even industrial markets such as game hardware and software, mobile phones, and semiconductors. SONY stock has risen more than 10% over the past month.
The company has every intention to be one of the top entertainment networks in the world. A week ago, the company announced a merger with India’s Zee to form a television powerhouse within the country. The plan is to grab more advertising revenue while challenging top rival Walt Disney in a key growth market in India. The proposed alliance will stand to become India’s largest player, with a market share of 27% outstripping that of Disney’s Star India at 24%.
The combined company would enhance its digital platforms while improving its ability to bid for broadcasting rights. In fact, an anonymous source who’s a former Disney executive had this to say, “For the first time there’s a viable challenge to Disney (in India).” These are bold claims as Disney has been such a dominant presence in the country. Now, do you believe this would provide a boost for SONY stock?
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ViacomCBS
Last but not least, we will be looking at CBS. In detail, the media and entertainment company operates through three segments, TV Entertainment, Cable Networks, and Filmed Entertainment. Some of its notable brands would include CBS, Showtime Networks, Paramount Pictures, Nickelodeon, BET, among others.
September has been an eventful month for CBS. For starters, the company launched BET Studios earlier this month. It is supposedly an unprecedented studio venture that offers equity ownership for black content creators. BET Studios will create premium television series and films for internal buyers such as Paramount+, SHOWTIME, CBS, Nickelodeon and select third-party platforms.
Not to mention, a new bundle pairing of Paramount+ and SHOWTIME was also launched this month. The streaming bundle is launching with a special introductory price for a limited time. With this, it gives CBS the opportunity to connect its diverse and differentiated cross-genre content slate with even more consumers. After all, both platforms are showing tremendous growth and momentum. All things considered, would you have VIAC stock on the top of your watchlist?
