Analysts are torn on how Fox News' ratings will be affected after Tucker Carlson's ousting craters the company's stock
- Tucker Carlson's exit from Fox News wiped $962 million from the network's market value on Monday.
- But analysts are torn about the long-term impact of the host's ouster on Fox Corp stock.
Fox News host Tucker Carlson's surprise ouster from the network drew outrage from big voices in the MAGA movement. Former president Donald Trump said he was "shocked" and "surprised" by the exit.
But financial analysts are torn about the impact Carlson's departure will have on Fox Corporation's stock — which lost about $962 million in market value on Monday after news broke of the departure. Fox Corp.'s Class A shares were down 5.4% Monday and pared losses to close 2.9% lower.
"Fox Cable News is now in rebuilding mode, and it will likely take time for the stock to recover," Brandon Nispel, an analyst at KeyBanc Capital Markets, told Bloomberg on Tuesday. "With the advertising upfronts right around the corner in May, we wonder what Fox is going to tell advertisers and how it will fill the gap in terms of programming and viewership," he added.
Matthew Tuttle, the CEO and CIO of Tuttle Capital Management, told Bloomberg that Carlson's exit is "definitely going to leave a mark on Fox."
But not all analysts shared the gloomy projection for Fox Corp stock in the long term.
Joseph Bonner, a senior securities analyst at Argus Research, told CBS MoneyWatch that Carlson's ouster may have a minimal impact on Fox in the short term, as advertisers usually book their advertisement slots in advance.
However, he also said that in the intermediate to longer term, there could be "some financial impact depending on who takes Carlson's place and their success, or lack thereof."
Carlson's exit from the network was so swift that the host only knew about his departure 10 minutes before the network made the announcement, according to various media reports, including The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times. He seemed to have no inkling that he was hosting his last show on Friday.