Advanced Television

US sequestrations hold down Eutelsat numbers

October 28, 2013

Paris-based satellite operator Eutelsat will deliver its Q1 numbers after the market shuts on October 29th, but most analysts expect a ‘steady as she goes’ report.

Investment banker Morgan Stanley, in a note to clients, says candidly that ”very little happened in Q1” although that statement ignores the mid-September Tribunal decision to award key transmission rights to arch-rivals SES Astra. However, that decision only kicked in on October 4th, so financially there was zero impact during Eutelsat’s Q1 revenues.

More important, implies Morgan Stanley, the market will want an update on guidance across the key Eutelsat trading divisions. “Eutelsat outlined guidance at the end of July that became very quickly obsolete as ETL acquired Satmex and lost the rights to operate at 28.5 East. We expect Eutelsat will therefore update guidance when it reports 1Q14. We are forecasting slow growth in Video (+1.5 per cent, limited incremental capacity), solid growth in Data (+13 per cent) as the commercialisation of Eutelsat 21B and Eutelsat 70B ramps up, and flat Multi-usage, impacted by US [governmental] sequesters.”

However, the bank is expecting Eutelsat to report overall revenues up 2.5 per cent (y-o-y) to €323 million, of which video revenues should hit €220 million (up 1.5 per cent).

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