WWE quarterly reports shows huge increase in profits
WWE's recent quarterly reports have shown that the promotion exceeded their expectations in terms of profits. Reportedly, the company saw its profits increase by four times during the last quarter.
According to Dave Meltzer, WWE saved a lot while producing the shows at the Performance Center. Reports suggest that the company ended up getting four times the profit that they had originally estimated. Here's what Dave Meltzer had to say,
"WWE profits for the quarter blew past analyst expectations. They figured $11.5 million to $12 million. Actual was $43.8 million. Lots of factors, but they saved tons in producing at PC and multiple shows together."
"Last year's Q2 profits were $10.4 million. So they quadrupled profits, and this doesn't factor in the talent layoffs because they were still being paid through July 17. That tells you just how ridiculous those layoffs were for the bottom line."
According to WrestlingInc, the decrease in the sale of tickets and merchandise caused a 17% fall in the company's revenue. However, WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon is happy with the overall number and praised his team in the press release sent out by the company.
"Our second quarter financial performance was strong and demonstrated our ability to respond to the challenges posed by COVID-19. We continue to adapt our business to the changing environment, focusing on the development of new content for global distribution platforms and increasing audience engagement to drive growth and value for our shareholders."
What's next for WWE?
WWE were earlier planning on moving out of the Performance Center and organizing SummerSlam amidst fans. However, this idea was scrapped amidst the growing concern of COVID-19. The promotion even intended to bring in family and friends of the talents as fans, but last month saw a sudden spike in COVID-19 cases in WWE.
As a result, it was earlier confirmed that WWE SummerSlam will take place at the Performance Center. There have also been rumors about Evolution 2.0 in the same week as WWE's next PPV, but no backstage reports have emerged on the topic as of this writing.