Shares of AMC Entertainment surged 16% Monday after the theater operator surprised Wall Street with strong second-quarter earnings. Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey isn’t hurting the meme stock either.
AMC saw adjusted quarterly earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization, or Ebitda, increase 70% to $321.4 million, while the theater operator also generated $190.1 million in free cash flow.
Total Attendance increased nearly 14% in the quarter. Separately, AMC reported that more than 4.3 million moviegoers worldwide attended its theaters from Thursday through Sunday, due primarily to excitement around The Odyssey.
IMAX on Monday also advanced 0.6%, and Cinemark Holdingsstock rose 4%.
AMC shares hit a record closing high of $339.05 on June 2, 2021, but have sunk around 99% since then. The stock has long been viewed as a meme stock, along with GameStop and others, with share price movement fueled by retail investors and online trends rather than underlying business performance. However, the stock move on Monday appears to be one of the rare moments when AMC shares are surging due to business fundamentals.
CEO Adam Aron on Monday called the results “extraordinary” and the best in the company’s 106-year history.
“After some admittedly tough years as our industry recovered only slowly from the ravages of COVID-19 and its aftermath, the relentless focus of AMC on delighting our guests as we execute with all cylinders blazing is reflected in our record-setting second quarter financial results,” Aron said in the earnings release.
