It might go without saying that back in April, Twitter ( NYSE: TWTR ) wasn't expecting to garner too much attention with its second quarter results.
After all, the company had agreed to be acquired by Elon Musk for $54.20 a share, or the equivalent of $44B. Twitter ( TWTR ) Chief Executive Parag Agrawal probably thought the path toward the deal being done was clear, and that any second-quarter earnings results would just be perfunctory.
Oh, but how things have changed.
By now, everyone is well aware of the drama that has engulfed Twitter ( TWTR ) since Musk first agreed to acquire the company three months ago. As of now, Musk is trying to terminate the deal, and Twitter ( TWTR ) has sued to force him to adhere to the terms of the acquisition. And on Tuesday, a Delaware judge dealt a blow to Musk by deciding that Twitter's ( TWTR ) case can be expedited and said the trial will take place in October .
All in all, what's resulted is a stomach-churning experience for Twitter's ( TWTR ) shareholders, as the company's stock price has fallen almost 23% since Musk's acquisition was announced on April 25.
The future of Twitter ( TWTR ) remains uncertain. But, in the meantime, business goes on. And as such, the still publicly traded company has earnings results to deliver. Wall Street analysts estimate Twitter ( TWTR ) will report a second-quarter profit of 14 cents a share, excluding one-time items, on revenue of $1.34B.
The company has said it won't hold a conference call to discuss its results, so anything it says about its business, or the Musk situation, will likely be kept to its earnings release. But, that hasn't stopped analysts from speculating about how business went for Twitter ( TWTR ) during its second quarter.
Truist Securities' Youssef Squali said that he expects Twitter ( TWTR ) to report results that are essentially "in line" with the consensus forecasts, as it prepares for "a messy and prolonged court battle" to try and force Musk to go through with his acquisition on the original terms. Squali said that the current environment has created what amounts to the ultimate wait-and-see situation for Twitter ( TWTR ) and its shareholders.
"This whole saga renders the investment case for Twitter ( TWTR ) hard to make at this point," Squali said. "We see this [lawsuit] move as a high stakes-high stakes gamble for both parties."
Dan Ives, of Wedbush Securities, recently called the situation between Twitter ( TWTR ) and Musk "a game of odds [and] legal analysis", and suggested there are really four potential scenarios that may result by the time all the dust settles on the matter.
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Twitter earnings may get more attention than expected as Musk drama drags on