Roku Crushes Estimates, Up Over 50 Pct In Morning Session $ROKU

• Adjusted EPS: 10 cents loss, excluding items, vs. loss of $1.37 expected by a Thomson Reuters consensus estimate.
• Revenue: $124.8 million vs. estimate of $110.5 million by Thomson Reuters’ consensus.

The company went public in late September, raising $252 million in an IPO before falling nearly 20 percent over the next 5 weeks. The company is focused on a subscription model – offering content from various providers such as HBO, Netflix, Hulu, Starz and others directly on their Roku branded televisions and streaming set top boxes.

“Our business really is about building active accounts,” CEO Anthony Wood told CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street” Thursday. “For us, selling players is just a great way to build up active accounts and we optimize that business around volume of players.”

User Boost

The company saw a 58 percent annual increase in streaming hours, and a 48 percent increase in active accounts – adding DirecTV Now and Hulu Live to the platform. Wood says that a potential deal with Disney and 21st Century Fox is also in the works.

“We are the leading OTT distribution company in the U.S. and so those companies naturally come to Roku for distribution of their content, and we’re just a great partner for them,” Wood said. “Those companies, as they shift to OTT, that is what’s driving our business.”

Roku is also ramping up its advertising model to better monetize viewers – which they’re already doing a great job of, growing revenue per user to around $12.68 per year, up 37 percent year-over-year.

“Everyone over time is going to shift to streaming, and I think importantly, the entire ad business — television ad business, which today is still predominantly on traditional linear TV — is moving to streaming as they follow their viewers to streaming,” Wood said.

Roku predicted it may break even next quarter before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.