Morgan Stanley has elevated Liberty Formula One to its top selection in the Media & Entertainment sector, highlighting what the bank sees as substantial room for commercial growth in underpenetrated geographies.
The investment house reinforced its conviction after a series of meetings with Liberty Formula One management that took place around the Silverstone Grand Prix in the United Kingdom. Morgan Stanley said those conversations – held with Liberty CEO Derek Chang and senior Formula One executives including F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali, Chief Commercial Officer Emily Prazer, Head of Race Promotion Louise Young and Head of Media Rights Ian Holmes – strengthened its view that the sport’s global footprint remains under-monetized.
The Silverstone race weekend drew more than 570,000 fans across three days. Morgan Stanley highlighted that Formula One reaches a global audience of more than 800 million fans and maintains in excess of 125 million social media followers, yet the firm believes awareness and commercial penetration are still developing, particularly in the United States and China.
On valuation, Morgan Stanley reiterated Liberty Formula One as a top pick and maintained a $120 price target for the company, while describing a $135 outcome as a bull-case scenario. The firm suggested the stock is underowned and undervalued relative to the opportunity it sees in expanding monetization.
Sporting and audience dynamics
Morgan Stanley noted that this season’s competition has been compelling as teams and drivers adapt to regulation and engine changes. The competitive picture features established names such as Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen, and it includes younger talent that is activating new audiences, exemplified by 19-year-old Italian driver Kimi Antonelli. Mercedes driver George Russell is also on a notable run.
New manufacturer entries including Audi and Cadillac were cited as evidence of the high barriers to entry for newcomers, an observation Morgan Stanley used to underline the sport’s commercial scarcity and strategic value.
Audience trends and monetization outlook
The Morgan Stanley team pointed to accelerating audience metrics: the sport’s audience is growing by more than 10% year-over-year while overall awareness remains below 50%. The fan base skews young, with more than 40% under age 35, and fan affinity is expanding in double-digit percentages. Despite those gains, the firm believes Formula One has not yet fully monetized demand in key markets such as the United States, where general awareness of drivers remains limited, and in Asia, particularly China.
Analyst activity and operational notes
Recent analyst coverage has moved around Liberty Formula One: Bernstein SocGen raised its price target to $115, citing sponsorship growth, while UBS trimmed its target to $104. On an operational front, company management indicated that out of two canceled Middle Eastern races, only one might be rescheduled.
Taken together, Morgan Stanley’s discussions with management, the size and composition of the global fan base, and shifting analyst targets form the basis for its positioning of Liberty Formula One as a top Media & Entertainment pick.