Dreamworks Animation Plunges 9% As Q4 Loss Sharply Widens On Charges

(RTTNews) - Shares of DreamWorks Animation SKG, Inc. (DWA) plunged more than nine percent in extended trading on Tuesday after the entertainment studio reported a loss for the fourth quarter that was sharply wider than last year, hurt by hefty restructuring-related charges. However, the loss per share came in significantly narrower than analysts' expectations, while quarterly revenues missed their estimates.

"Although 2014 was a challenging year for our Company, I am confident that our recent announcement to restructure our feature film business will enable us to deliver great films and better box office results, while improving the overall financial performance of our business," CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg said in a statement.

Glendale, California-based DreamWorks Animation reported a net loss of $263.22 million or $3.08 per share for the fourth quarter, sharply wider than $17.19 million or $0.20 per share in the prior- year quarter.

Results for the latest quarter primarily include restructuring-related charges, consisting of film and other inventory write-offs of $1.82 per share as well as employee termination costs of $0.51 per share. Part of the write-offs were related to the performance of 'The Penguins of Madagascar' and 'Mr. Peabody and Sherman,' as well as certain other titles and investments.

Excluding the items, adjusted net loss for the latest quarter was $64.07 million or $0.75 per share. On average, eight analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to report a loss of $3.01 per share for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.

DreamWorks, the studio behind 'Shrek', 'Kung Fu Panda' and 'How to Train Your Dragon,' said revenues for the quarter grew 14.7 percent to $234.24 million from $204.28 million in the same quarter last year, but missed ten Wall Street analysts' consensus estimate of $246.17 million.

Feature film revenues for the quarter increased to $131.3 million, and television series and specials segment revenues improved 7.7 percent to $50.7 million from last year. Revenues from the consumer products segment surged 77.5 percent to $22.1 million from a year ago.

The new media segment, which consists of revenues and expenses attributable to Awesomeness TV ("ATV") and related businesses, generated revenues of $24.9 million. Meanwhile, revenues from the all other segment declined to $5.2 million, primarily because the company is no longer self-producing any live performance productions.

'How to Train Your Dragon 2,' which was released theatrically on June 13, 2014, contributed feature film revenue of $66.0 million to the quarter, primarily from home entertainment.

'The Penguins of Madagascar,' which was released theatrically on November 26, 2014, contributed feature film revenue of $6.9 million in the quarter, primarily from distribution outside of Fox territories.

'Turbo' contributed feature film revenue of $5.8 million, and 'The Croods' contributed $6.5 million. Library titles contributed feature film revenue of $46.1 million to the quarter.

"And while 2015 will be a transitional year for us, I couldn't be more confident for the future. We have a set of strategic imperatives in place designed to ensure sustainable and profitable growth over the long term," Katzenberg added.

DWA closed Tuesday's regular trading session at $21.13, up $0.51 or 2.47% on a volume of 0.89 million shares. However, the stock lost plunged $1.92 or 9.09% in after-hours trading.