Starz Entertainment Corp

STRZ

Market cap $458M

Starz Entertainment remains a compelling "Buy," with strong tailwinds and an attractive valuation despite doubling YTD. Exiting the unprofitable Universal Pay Two deal accelerates STRZ's path to a 20% OIBDA margin by late 2027. Byron Allen's 11% stake and takeover interest provide a potential catalyst, but STRZ is undervalued even without a deal.

Starz Entertainment NASDAQ: STRZ executives said the company delivered a strong first quarter of fiscal 2026 and is moving faster than previously expected toward its long-term margin target, aided by content cost reductions, pricing discipline and a shift toward owned original programming.

STRZ posts a wider-than-expected Q1 loss; revenues fall 7.2% YoY and miss estimates, while free cash flow remains positive.

Starz Entertainment Corp. (STRZ) Q1 2026 Earnings Call Transcript

Starz CEO Jeff Hirsch said the company has exited its pay-2 deal with Universal as it revisits content costs a year into its run as a standalone. “As we have continued to highlight, right-sizing the content cost structure of the business has been paramount to reaching our stated goal of 20% margin.

Starz CEO Jeff Hirsch said the company has exited its output deal with Universal as it revisits content costs a year into its run as a standalone. “Today, we are announcing that we have exited our Pay 2 agreement with Universal.

Starz posted a mixed first quarter as it celebrated one year as a standalone company after separating from Lionsgate. It continues to juggle OTT and linear as it fine tunes programming including with new owned originals. The stock has surged this year. It closed off a quarter at $20.

STARZ Delivers Positive Operating Cash Flow and Accelerates Margin Expansion Timeline OTT Revenue Grew Sequentially to $211.1 Million Net Cash Provided by Operating Activities was $73.2 Million, a Year-over-Year Improvement of $136.7 Million Unlevered Free Cash Flow and Equity Free Cash Flow were $80.7 Million and $68.7 Million, Respectively Operating Loss was $(152.8) Million Adjusted OIBDA1 Grew Sequentially to $58.0 Million Management Accelerates 20% Adjusted OIBDA Margin Outlook to the Second Half of 2027, One Year Ahead of Prior Guidance2 Management Reiterates All Previously Provided 2026 Outlook Targets SANTA MONICA, Calif. and VANCOUVER, B.C.

Starz trades at a deep discount, with a 4x EV/EBITDA multiple and 24.5% unlevered FCF yield, despite strong OTT subscriber growth. OTT now represents 72% of STRZ's 17.6 million US subs, with linear rapidly declining; the business is nearing an inflection where streaming growth offsets linear erosion. STRZ's in-house content production, like Fightland, aims to boost margins and address concerns over lack of proprietary library, supporting OIBDA growth from $200M (2025) to $300M (2028).

SANTA MONICA, Calif., April 7, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- STARZ (NASDAQ: STRZ) announced today the company will report its first quarter financial results for 2026, ended March 31, 2026, on Thursday, May 7.