Yesterday, we found out that media giant Paramount (NASDAQ:PARA) was poised to lose its top lawyer. Now, new reports have emerged saying that Christa D’Alimonte wasn’t the only one set to leave. Two more top Paramount staffers are packing their bags and heading for daylight, but shareholders aren’t exactly displeased. Paramount shares are up fractionally in Friday afternoon’s trading despite the losses.
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The latest losses come from rather difficult segments for Paramount to lose experienced people from, including Bob Buchi, the head of home entertainment at Paramount, and Craig White, the executive vice president for worldwide sales and distribution for home entertainment.
The good news, of sorts, is that at least Buchi has an immediate replacement ready to go in Andres Alvarez, digital distribution executive for Amazon MGM. This may prove to be helpful for Paramount, as it still plans to fire up somewhere around $500 million in annual cost savings at a time when it looks like it’s not going to get a deal going that might save it.
All This and Content Troubles
So, these departures are going to leave Paramount on the back foot and at what might be the worst time in years. But it gets worse: reports now note that Kevin Costner will not be back for “Yellowstone” going into the second half of the show’s fifth season. That’s a blow for the Western’s fans, but there may be a bit of hope, as Paramount+ will soon air “Nothin’ But a Good Time: The Uncensored Story of ’80s Hair Metal.” The docuseries will cover a range of the biggest 80s bands, including Poison, Ratt, and Skid Row, among others.
Is Paramount a Good Stock to Buy?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Moderate Sell consensus rating on PARA stock based on two Buys, seven Holds, and eight Sells assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 33.99% loss in its share price over the past year, the average PARA price target of $11.90 per share implies 18.11% upside potential.
