S&P said it’s putting Endeavor and UFC on so-called CreditWatch with negative implications reflects pressure on revenue due to the spread of the coronavirus, S&P anticipates a mid-teens percent drop in events, media, and services revenue and a substantial decline in UFC’s live ticketing revenue. Extended government and private voluntary restrictions on travel and out-of-home entertainment could put additional pressure on cash flow and raise leverage higher this year.
Insiders at Endeavor have said they hope to weather a storm that hasn’t been seen before and doesn’t have a stop date. Raises and bonuses were paid right before the crisis and Endeavor president Mark Shapiro days ago told agents that expense accounts were frozen, along with travel. These are moves made in some form or other by all major agencies, but Endeavor’s live event exposure puts it in a particularly tough spot.
Good