Sun TV shrouded in clouds

Sun TV has been among the top five losers since the opening bell today morning. The ‘lower-than-expected’ Q2FY19 earnings and the growing perception that the company might lose out as the growing fancy for Over-The-Top (OTT) takes over India, kept the stock price in the red.

OTT is the newest technology term used for the delivery of film and TV content via the internet, without requiring users to subscribe to a traditional cable or satellite pay-TV services. The rising popularity of Netflix and Prime over the traditional TV services is where Sun TV does not have a presence and that the worry among fund and brokerage houses.

For Q2FY19 the company actually delivered a decent performance. Its revenue rose 11% (YoY) at Rs.676 crore and net profit showed a good jump of 23% at Rs.285 crore. Subscription revenue rose 21%, which at least currently defies the worry of OTT taking over subscription.

Its operating profit came in at Rs.554 crore, up 12% while margins were good at 73.9%.