Former WWE Chairman, CEO and majority owner Vince McMahon plans to return as WWE Chairman to conduct a strategic review (i.e. a sale), of the company. Comcast (ticker: CMCSA) is the natural acquirer of WWE (ticker: WWE) given that the two firms already partner. WWE shares were up 11% in the aftermarket, which implies a valuation of approximately $7 billion or 18x 2022E Operating Profit.

• A WWE sale has been rumored for over a year. The rumor picked up steam this summer when former WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon stepped down when it came to light that WWE funds were used to pay off women that McMahon had relationships with. McMahon is WWE’s majority owner and controls the company through his Class B share ownership.

• Company sale. The WSJ reported Thursday that McMahon plans to return as WWE Chairman to run point on content licensing negotiations as well as to conduct a strategic review (i.e. a sale), of the company.

• Comcast’s Peacock network broadcasts WWE events and houses/streams WWE’s content library. The latter is a big deal. When Comcast and WWE struck their deal several years ago it was an enormous undertaking to migrate WWE content from its streaming platform – WWE Network – to Comcast’s streaming platform – Peacock. The two companies now have valuable operating history together which will significantly influence the outcome of any WWE sale transaction.

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