With a generally positive Q2 financial report, and finally some certainty over the Starz spinoff, Lionsgate has seen a very positive week for its stock results and overall market perception. Our industry expert, entertainment attorney Brandon Blake of Blake & Wang P.A., has the full details for us.
Estimation-Beating Revenue
Lionsgate’s revenue estimate was a target of $990M, which it surpassed with a positive $1.01B declaration. This also sees their losses narrow from last year’s $1.8B to $887.9M, primarily due to intangible asset write-downs, restructuring, and non-cash goodwill through their media networks arm. This same division saw segmented revenue rise from last year’s $369.1M to $416.5M. The studio motion picture segment saw revenues of $396M, up from $224M. The TV production segment, however, fell by 9% to $394M, primarily due to knock-on effects on episode delivery from the strikes during the period. Library titles generated a 17% rise to $870M.
The Standalone Starz Question
This includes the impact of charges related to Starz’s withdrawal from the UK and Latin America. Starz itself also saw approximately 480,000 new subscribers. The overall result was an adjusted loss per share of $3.79.
As for the future of Starz itself, that seems to lie in the creation of a separate standalone company focusing on the domestic US market alongside Canada and India. This will allow investors to separate Starz more clearly from the overall studio assets.
On the flip side, Lionsgate has acquired a slate of assets from Hasbro (sitting at $500M) as well as an upcoming majority stake in 3 Arts Entertainment. The knock-on budgetary impact from the strikes was estimated at around $30M, less than they were originally predicting.
Overall, it’s a very positive quarterly announcement for Lionsgate. With Hollywood operations now back to normal, and the Starz question almost settled, let’s hope for an even better Q3 announcement from them.
