Fubo Shares Jump on Orioles-National RSN Deal
Shares of sports-centric streaming service Fubo jumped 10% early Wednesday on the news of a deal for the streamer to carry the regional sports network of the Baltimore Orioles and Washington Nationals. The stock closed trading at $1.61 a share to finish up 4.55% on the day.
Fubo, which offers cable-like television bundles of channels, will offer subscribers in a six-state, one-district region the option to subscribe to Mid-Atlantic Sports Network, which broadcasts the Orioles’ and Nationals’ games. The region—stretching from Harrisburg, Penn., in the north to Charlotte, N.C., in the south—is the same footprint where MASN is available by cable and satellite.
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Fubo shares were up as much as 15 cents Wednesday to $1.69 in trading on the New York Stock Exchange on better-than-average volume on the news, lifting shares off a nine-month low touched Tuesday. The company declined to comment on the stock move, citing SEC regulations.
The offering gives fans another option to access games, at packages appearing to start at $80 a month, according to the Fubo website. The site indicates it will begin streaming MASN games starting Thursday. Last week MASN and cable provider Comcast came to an agreement to continue offering MASN to D.C.-area customers, but on a pricier tier that will cost an additional $20 a month.
Fubo, which has about 1.2 million subscribers, markets itself as a sports-first streaming service that replaces cable. Its shares are down almost 50% in 2024, including on competitive pressure from an announced sports streaming bundle from Walt Disney, Fox and Warner Brothers Discover. Fubo is suing the trio over their pricing practices.
The Orioles own two-thirds of MASN, and the Nationals own one-third, as part of the arrangement that allowed the Nationals to relocate to Washington from Montreal in 2004.
“Fubo has become a leading sports media platform and this new partnership will deliver O’s and Nats baseball to a significant new audience,” John McGuinness, senior vice president, MASN, said.
(This article has been updated in the first paragraph with Fubo’s closing stock price.)
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