Lionsgate Revenue Down, Earnings Up

SANTA MONICA/VANCOUVER: Despite a dip in revenue, Lionsgate reported first-quarter earnings that were higher than the prior-year period.

For the three months ended June 30, Lionsgate posted earnings at $43.3 million, compared to a profit of $13.6 million in the same period a year ago. Revenue, however, took a hit, at $449.4 million compared to the year-ago's $569.7 million.

Revenue was impacted due to fewer theatrical releases. There were only two wide releases in the quarter compared to three wide releases, including Now You Can See Me, in the prior-year quarter. Lower TV production revenue reflected fewer deliveries of Mad Men, which was split in its seventh season.

Revenue for the motion picture segment was $331.9 million, compared to $438.6 million a year ago. Within this area, theatrical revenue declined to $42.7 million, again due to fewer releases.

Home entertainment revenue for the quarter was $140.9 million, compared to $169.4 million, as two wide-release theatrical titles were released on home entertainment during the quarter compared to the five in the prior year. Divergent had strong numbers on packaged media, VOD and electronic sell-through platforms after the quarter.

TV revenue included in the motion picture segment was up 60 percent to $58.8 million. This was helped by TV windows opening for the feature films Ender's Game and Red 2.

International motion picture revenue, not including Lionsgate U.K., was down from $79.1 million a year ago to $60.7 million for the quarter. There were three wide releases worldwide in the quarter compared to five in the prior-year period.

Lionsgate U.K. had revenue of $30 million, down from the $32.4 million reported in the same quarter a year ago.

Revenue for the TV production segment decreased from $131.1 million to $117.5 million. The strong international revenue driven by Anger Management, Orange Is the New Black and Mad Men was offset by fewer domestic series deliveries, due largely to the timing of the Mad Men episode deliveries.

"We're pleased to report strong adjusted EBITDA, earnings and free cash flow generation in what is historically our lightest quarter of the fiscal year," said Jon Feltheimer, Lionsgate's CEO. "During the quarter we deepened our portfolio of brands and franchises, extended our global reach and formed entrepreneurial partnerships with digital and traditional platforms alike as we used our strengths as an innovative pure play content company to position ourselves for continued growth and profitability in an increasingly dynamic industry environment."