Losses at Lionsgate shrank during its third quarter, while revenue at the studio behind “Saw” and “The Hunger Games” dipped slightly. The entertainment company cited the box office success of “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever,” as well as record earnings from licensing its library of movies and shows for the improved fiscal picture. It also noted that it had started to recover from the Hollywood labor strikes of 2023 that brought production to a standstill.
For the three month period ending in December, revenue was roughly flat at $970.5 million, down from the $975.1 million that Lionsgate reported in the year-ago period. Operating income topped out at $35.8 million compared to a loss of $43.5 million in the year-ago quarter. Net losses attributable to Lionsgate shareholders came in at $21.9 million or $0.09 diluted net loss per share. That compared favorably to the loss of $107.4 million that Lionsgate reported a year ago.
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The company beat Wall Street estimates, with analysts predicting that the company would post revenues of $922 million and earnings per share of 28 cents. Shares of Lionsgate jumped more than 11% in after-hours trading on the stronger-than-expected results.
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The earnings came as Lionsgate finalized its long-gestating separation of Lionsgate Studios and Starz. As part of the plan, Starz will be led by current CEO Jeff Hirsch and will trade under the stock symbol STRZ. Lionsgate is trading under the symbol LION.
“I’m pleased to report a strong quarter in which our businesses performed well in a challenging environment,” said Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer in a statement. “We approach the separation of the studio and Starz with a record performance from our library, our Motion Picture Group converting a number of mid-budget films to profitability, [and] our Television Group shepherding an extensive portfolio of premium properties.”
Lionsgate’s studio business, which includes both its film and television operations, reported revenue of $713.8 million, an increase of 3% from the prior year quarter. That was due to improved earnings in its TV business, where segment revenue increased 63% to $404.6 million while segment profit was up significantly to $60.9 million. Those more robust results were thanks to the production of episodes of new series that Lionsgate oversees such as “Ghosts” and “Selling Sunset,” as well as licensing deals for older shows. Lionsgate reported record library revenue of $954 million for the previous 12 months, up 22%.
Lionsgate suffered through a string of film flops like “Borderlands” and “The Crow” for much of 2024, but started to rebound at the end of the year with “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever,” a family-friendly box office success. However, segment revenue and segment profit decreased to $309.2 million and $83.6 million, respectively. The comparisons were tough, with Lionsgate releasing “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes” and “Saw X” during the same stretch in 2023, two huge hits.
Lionsgate’s Media Networks operations, which includes Starz, saw revenue drop from $346.9 million to $341.9 million while segment profit fell sharply from $63.3 million to $25.7 million on higher content amortization.
