Lionsgate Posts Record Quarterly Revenue

SANTA MONICA: Lionsgate announced a 13 percent increase in revenue year-on-year for the fiscal quarter ended December 31, 2013, largely driven by the success of films such as Hunger Games: Catching Fire.

Revenue for the quarter was $839.9 million, compared to $743.6 million in the prior year quarter. This was driven by the box office performance of the latest Hunger Games installment, as well as contributions from domestic theatrical releases such as Ender's Game and A Madea Christmas and the international performances from Red 2, Escape Plan and Now You See Me. Net income for the quarter was $96.4 million, compared to the year-ago period's $61.4 million.

The company's filmed entertainment library had one of its best quarterly performances ever, generating $148.6 million in revenue, a 10 percent increase from the prior year quarter. Overall motion picture segment revenue for the quarter was $757.6 million, an increase of 12 percent from the prior year quarter. Within the motion picture segment, theatrical revenue increased 44 percent to a quarterly record $277.6 million.

Lionsgate's home entertainment revenue from both motion pictures and television was $200.7 million for the quarter compared to $233.0 million for the prior year quarter.

Television revenue included in the motion picture segment increased 7 percent to $105.8 million in the quarter, led by titles such as The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2, Warm Bodies, Sinister, Snitch and Temptation: Confessions of a Marriage Counselor. International motion picture segment revenue (excluding Lionsgate U.K.) of $117.1 million in the quarter increased 31 percent from $89.5 million in the prior year quarter.

Lionsgate U.K. had its best ever quarterly revenue, of $55.9 million, a 53 percent increase, driven by the U.K. theatrical release of The Hunger Games: Catching Fire and the third-party title Olympus Has Fallen. 

Revenue in the television production segment was $82.3 million in the quarter, a 17 percent rise, as domestic and international television posted gains that offset a decline in home entertainment revenue from television production. Episodes of Anger Management, Nashville and Orange Is the New Black were among the shows that delivered best in the quarter.

"Our stellar results in the quarter were attributable to our operating performance, the favorable environment for content and the benefits from our strong balance sheet," said Jon Feltheimer, Lionsgate's CEO. "We will continue to invest in content and embrace innovative models for licensing that content to digital and traditional platforms alike in order to build on this performance and create additional long-term value for our shareholders."