Cinemark lost $239.3 million in the final quarter of 2020, the movie-theater chain revealed on Friday.
Wall Street had forecast a Q4 loss of $1.46 per share on revenue of $79.77 million, according to a consensus of 11 analysts compiled by Yahoo Finance. Cinemark reported a diluted loss per share of $2.03 on revenue of $98.2 million.
For an admittedly unfair comparison due to timing of the coronavirus pandemic, in the fourth quarter of 2019, Cinemark brought in $434.3 million in revenue. The company made money back then: 22 cents per share, or $26.9 million on an overall basis.
As of December 31, 2020, Cinemark had 217 domestic and 129 international movie theaters open — all operating at limited hours and showing mostly library titles. There were some new releases.
During the final three months of 2020, Cinemark theaters welcomed 6.6 million patrons. The averaged ticket price was $7.42 and concession revenue per customer was $4.75.
“It is almost unfathomable that one year ago, we were reporting Cinemark’s fifth consecutive year of record results with the North American industry touting the second-highest grossing box office of all-time,” Cinemark CEO Mark Zoradi said in a prepared statement accompanying his company’s earnings. “While COVID-19 has caused significant distress to our industry and our company, Cinemark has maintained discipline and consistency, while demonstrating relentless perseverance and agility.”
“We remain highly confident in the rebound of our industry once the virus is more contained, as evidenced by recent box office results in China, Japan and Australia,” he continued. “Cinemark was well-positioned heading into the crisis, and we have adapted and evolved the way we operate to navigate the current environment, and to ensure we remain successful and further solidify our leadership position as theatrical moviegoing resurges.”
Cinemark stock (CNK) closed Thursday afternoon at $22.79 per share. The stock markets will reopen at 9:30 a.m. ET.
Zoradi and other Cinemark executives will host a conference call at 8:30 a.m. ET to discuss the fourth quarter and full-year in greater detail.