AMC Reports Second-Quarter Revenue, Profit Drop Amid Strike-Related Movie Delays

NEW YORK — AMC Entertainment on Wednesday warned investors of significant declines in key second-quarter financial metrics that led to a more than 7% drop in its stock price.

The company attributed the decline to the actors’ and screenwriters’ strikes of the previous year, which led to fewer film releases and the resulting “weakness” in the quarter ended June 30.

Preliminary results show AMC’s revenue fell more than 23% to $1.03 billion. The company also expects to report a net loss of $32.8 million, a stark contrast to the $8.6 million profit it reported in the second quarter of 2023. Full financial results are due on August 2.

“As we anticipated and previously communicated, the prolonged actor and writer strikes of 2023 have significantly reduced the number of theatrical releases in early 2024,” said Adam Aron, chairman and CEO of AMC Entertainment. “This explains the weakness in our preliminary second quarter 2024 results compared to the same quarter last year.”

Despite a slow start, the film industry has seen a rebound in the past month, with audiences returning to theaters for big releases like Disney and Pixar’s “Inside Out 2,” Universal and Illumination’s “Despicable Me 4,” Universal’s “Twisters,” and Neon’s indie horror hit “Longlegs.”

“But if you only look at the entire quarter, the casual observer might miss the very positive developments in the second quarter,” Aron added. “It finally looks like movie theaters are picking up again.”

The excitement continues with the upcoming release of Disney and Marvel’s “Deadpool & Wolverine,” which is expected to be the highest-grossing R-rated film of 2024 and potentially ever.

Looking ahead, there are significant releases planned for the second half of the year, including “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” in early September, “Joker: Folie à Deux” and “Venom: The Last Dance” in October, “Gladiator II,” “Moana 2,” and “Wicked” in November, and “Kraven the Hunter,” “Sonic the Hedgehog 3,” and “Mufasa: The Lion King” in December.

“AMC remains optimistic that theatrical revenues will strengthen in the second half of 2024 and continue to grow in 2025 and 2026,” Aron said. “This should lead to an increase in adjusted EBITDA as overall industry revenues increase, illuminating a promising future for AMC.”