Boston, MA 10/22/2013 (wallstreetpr) – Since its inception, Pandora Media Inc (NYSE:P) has been a darling to many internet radio users and has its CFO stating that they are the best at what they do. Despite having positive balance sheets and posting a record 170% growth over the last 12 months, the company is yet to make a profit.
However with the launching of iTunes internet radio from Apple things could get worse for Pandora. It is expected that this significant mass will be shifted to the iTunes internet radio platform. Furthermore Apple has the financial muscle to buy and sell Pandora up to 20 times. Therefore, competing with Apple will not be an easy task.
Even though Pandora’s CFO Mike Herring managed to convince investors that the recently launched iTunes internet radio was not a threat to them, sparks of concern were witnessed after the launching of iTunes radio. It is also notable to mention that upon the launch Pandora’s share plummeted from mid-$27per share to between $24 and $23 per share. Even though they have this far recovered there is no telling what lies in the future.
Pandora also made a decision to move their fiscal year from January 31 year end to December 31 year end. This will be with effect from the year ending December 31, 2013. This is in an effort to align Pandora’s business calendar with the advertising industry’s cycle. The announcement that will be made through a conference call is also expected to address the historical financial results and will be hosted by the CFO Mike Herring and the Vice President of corporate finance and investor relations Dominic Paschel. With the new competition it is only worth to wait and see how the market will react for the mean time Pandora is taking the situation well.
