In a bizarre year for media, companies like EchoStar, Warner Bros. Discovery, and FuboTV have become top stock market performers not because of their core business, but because of high-stakes asset sales, takeover battles, and market consolidation.
Cashing in the chips: EchoStar's stock surged an astonishing 360% this year even as its core TV business is bleeding customers, having lost 860,000 subscribers over the past year. The lift came from selling off its valuable wireless spectrum, with official announcements confirming massive deals with AT&T and SpaceX.
The takeover tussle: A bidding war erupted over Warner Bros. Discovery, sending its valuation up over 173%. The drama began with an around $83 billion deal for Netflix to acquire WBD's studio and streaming assets. Paramount quickly challenged with a hostile, over $108 billion all-cash offer backed by a financial guarantee from Oracle founder Larry Ellison, as reported by CNBC. But WBD's board issued a formal statement rejecting the takeover and urging shareholders to stand by the Netflix agreement.
Joining the House of Mouse: The story was similar for sports-centric streamer FuboTV, whose valuation jumped over 105%. The catalyst was Disney acquiring a 70% controlling stake to merge Fubo's operations with Hulu + Live TV, a deal that closed in October to create a new powerhouse in the streaming pay-TV market.
These events show a clear disconnect between operational health and market valuation. For these media companies, the underlying value of their assets—from spectrum licenses to content libraries—has become far more important to investors than their ability to grow a subscriber base.
