Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR) is slated to introduce its newest strategy to attract more users: streaming live games. Now, this is great news for sports fans, particularly football fanatics because the micro social network is kickstarting its campaign with a Jets V. Bills game this Thursday, but some industry insiders are unsure if Twitter’s latest marketing maneuver, which according to reports from WSJ/Bloomberg cost the company $10 million, will yield any results.
Cantor Fitzgerald’s Youssef Squali said he is reiterating a ‘Hold’ rating on Twitter shares with an $18 price target after mulling over the company’s roster of 10 NFL football game live streams.
Twitter’s next game streaming is scheduled on September 22. It will feature Texans V. Patriots. The last of the 10 games will be aired on December 22nd, Giants V. Eagles.
The new feature could be a win or a loss for Twitter management, Squali said [via Barron’s], pointing out that this “may be mgt’s last opportunity to reignite growth in users, engagement, and monetization; failure to do so is likely to embolden shareholders to pressure the board to evaluate alternatives to maximize value, incl. M&A and taking the company private.”
The analyst added that rumors of massive layoffs are affecting Twitter’s stock price, explaining that “[w]ith both user growth and monetization stalling, 3Q:16 is likely to be disappointing.”
However, Squali, who according to TipRanks upholds a 72% success rate, noted that “the slew of content streaming partnerships discussed above could re-energize the platform and reaccelerate growth in 4Q:16 and FY:17..”
The analyst however, remains a skeptic over the benefits of the live events, saying that “Twitter is hardly the only one pursuing a streaming content strategy built around live sporting events, with Amazon the latest to throw its hat in the ring.”
Shares of Twitter, which are down 21.87% year to date, posted a weekly loss of more than 9%.
The stock is currently trading at $18.42, up $0.34, or 1.88%.
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