AMC Theatres, the largest movie theater chain in the U.S., has reported a net loss of $32.8 million for the second quarter of 2024, reflecting a challenging period for the industry. Total revenue fell to $1.03 billion, a decrease of nearly $300 million compared to the same period last year. Attendance also dropped significantly, with around 50 million patrons visiting AMC theaters this quarter, down from over 66 million a year ago—a decline of about 25 percent.
CEO Adam Aron, who emphasized the importance of liquidity during an earnings call, reassured investors that AMC has substantial cash reserves of $770 million. Despite concerns over debt, Aron described the company’s financial situation as manageable, attributing the debt challenges to long-term refinancing efforts and dismissing critics as “Nervous Nellies.”
Aron acknowledged that the second quarter was adversely affected by delays in movie production due to the 2023 Hollywood writers’ and actors’ strikes. However, he highlighted that the quarter ended on a positive note, buoyed by the success of Disney’s “Inside Out 2,” which has become the highest-grossing animated film of all time. The quarter’s final month saw notable contributions from “Bad Boys: Ride or Die” and “Inside Out 2,” which helped mitigate earlier declines.
The second quarter of 2023 had benefitted from blockbuster hits like “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” and “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3,” which drove higher box office revenues compared to this year’s offerings. Notably, the figures do not account for the successful releases of “Twisters” and “Deadpool & Wolverine,” which launched in July and are expected to positively impact AMC’s third-quarter performance.
Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) for AMC reached $29.4 million, a sharp decrease from $182.5 million in the same quarter last year. Despite this, Aron remained optimistic about the industry’s recovery, citing “Deadpool & Wolverine” as a significant contributor to recent successes, including AMC’s record-setting opening weekend for a rated-R film.
Looking ahead, Aron believes that the box office will improve in the second half of the year, although he tempered expectations, noting that it may not surpass the blockbuster performance of the third quarter of 2023, which included hits like “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer.”
In related news, other major theater chains also reported declines. Cinemark, the third-largest U.S. chain, saw a 22.1 percent drop in revenue, totaling $734.2 million for the quarter. Marcus Theatres, ranked fourth, reported a decline in theater admission revenue from $69 million to $48.5 million year-over-year.
Cinemark CEO Sean Gamble forecasted around 100 wide-release studio movies for 2024, down from approximately 110 in 2023, but expressed optimism for a rebound in movie volume and revenue in the coming year, predicting improvements between pre-pandemic levels and the current year’s performance.
