Loss

And not really a big surprise (at least to some).

DreamWorks Animation on Tuesday reported a net loss of $15.4 million, or 18 cents per share, much wider than analysts had expected as How to Train Your Dragon 2 awaits release in several significant international territories, including China, Spain and Italy.

Dragon 2, CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg said Tuesday, "will be a highly profitable film for the company and DreamWorks Dragons will remain a very valuable franchise for many years to come."

While Dragon 2 has made $428 million worldwide so far, it only contributed $2.6 million in feature film revenue during the second quarter.

The more bullish analysts had expected DreamWorks Animation to break even in the quarter, whereas the more bearish ones figured on about a 7-cent loss per share. Revenue came in at $122.3 million while analysts predicted $138.1 million. ...

The starry-eyed optimists thought the company would be at break-even, but it turned out that even the pessimists were short of the mark. The losses were wider than analysts expected.

I guess it shouldn't be a huge surprise. The company has been doing a lot of spending lately, what with Netflix/tv production, outside acquisitions, and far-from-inexpensive features. Until more of the products now in the pipeline hit the marketplace, there will likely be more outgo than income.