Imax recently released its financial results for the last quarter, showing a decrease in revenue and profit. Despite this decline, the company managed to surpass Wall Street estimates, which caused a surge in its stock price. Sales dropped by 9% to $89 million for the three months ending in June, but still managed to exceed consensus forecasts. Similarly, adjusted ebitda decreased by 14% to $31 million, and adjusted earnings per share dropped to 18 cents from 26 cents in the previous year’s quarter.
One of the factors that contributed to Imax’s positive performance was a surge in the global box office, especially in June. The company reported a global box office revenue of $196.4 million in the second quarter, following a successful June with the release of several hit movies. Imax highlighted that it delivered 10% or more of the domestic opening on seven consecutive releases during the spring, despite being available on only 1% of North American screens.
In addition to its box office success, Imax also benefited from the sale of its original documentary, The Blue Angels, to Amazon. The documentary earned over $2.2 million in Imax screenings and became the highest-grossing theatrical documentary opening of the year. It continued this success on Prime Video, becoming the top original film in its first weekend and the third most popular original movie on all streaming platforms in its first week.
CEO Rich Gelfond expressed optimism about Imax’s future, stating that the company is well-positioned to leverage its strong, asset-lite business model. He attributed the challenging revenue and profit numbers to Hollywood strikes from the previous year and the lingering effects of the pandemic. However, Gelfond indicated that Imax is at an inflection point in its business, with increased system sales activity, significant system installations, and a promising slate of movies scheduled through 2026.
While Imax faced challenges in revenue and profit in the last quarter, the company’s ability to exceed expectations and capitalize on global box office trends and original content sales points towards a positive future for the business.