AT&T's $85.4 billion offer for Time Warner shows that content may indeed be king, and Wall Street is already telling clients what the mega deal's long-term ramifications are and how to trade it.
"AT&T's deal for TWX is likely to be seen as a turning point for the media industry in the coming years," Barclays' Kannan Venkateshwar wrote in a note to clients Sunday.
"[T-TWX deal] is just the first step in a multi-step process that is likely to force a number of other management teams to act...In our opinion, the media value chain is moving towards an end state maybe 5 to 7 years from now where 3 or 4 large vertically integrated conglomerates with presence in wireline, wireless and content potentially compete with each other."
If traders want to ride Time Warner's coattails without betting on this deal closing specifically due to regulatory concerns, there are a few media stocks left that trade inline with the HBO owner.
Using Kensho, CNBC PRO searched for the media stocks with the highest correlation to Time Warner shares over the last year. The results are below:
If one believes content got a little more valuable in the wake of this deal, these shares may be worth a look.
In addition, here is what Barclays predicts Disney, Comcast and Dish Network will do in the new post-merger media landscape.
