\n
![](\"https:\/\/content.fortune.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/GettyImages-1235981327-e1709248571301.jpg?w=2048\")
<\/p>\n [ad_1]
\n<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s hear it for the girls who run AMC Theatres\u2019 world. Or at least account for \u201cliterally all\u201d of the company\u2019s revenue increase this quarter, according to CEO of AMC Theatres, Adam Aron.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
AMC attributed all of this quarter\u2019s revenue increase to Taylor Swift and Beyonce, two powerful superstars who have taken their massive live concerts to the big screens\u2013even as traditional cinema struggles.\u00a0<\/p>\n
This quarter, the company beat Wall Street expectations with a fourth-quarter revenue<\/a> of $1.10 billion, up from $990.9 million in 2022. Its saving grace, despite \u201ca diminished box office overall\u201d this quarter, Aron wrote in a press release<\/a>, took the form of two concert movies the stars landed in partnership with AMC: \u201cTaylor Swift: The Eras Tour<\/em>\u201d and \u201cRenaissance: A Film By Beyonc\u00e9<\/em>.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Yet the company could still face a turbulent year ahead, according to market analysts, due to low box office revenue, heavy debt, and writer strikes that Aron said has \u201ccrippled<\/a>\u201d Hollywood.\u00a0<\/p>\n The theater chain reported<\/a> a total revenue of $4.8 billion last year, up from $3.9 billion in 2022, and reported $396 million in net losses, an improvement from $577 million.\u00a0<\/p>\n The ladies\u2019 movies are playing a big part. Taylor Swift\u2019s concert was released in theaters in October and has now earned over $260 million<\/a> around the world\u2013making it the highest-grossing concert film ever. The previous record was held by the king of pop<\/a>, with Michael Jackson\u2019s 2009 concert film \u201cMichael Jackson\u2019s This Is It<\/em><\/a>,\u201d earning just shy of Swift\u2019s total at the global box office.\u00a0<\/p>\n Swifities, the main target audience for the film, delivered on the hype and might be deserving of an AMC thank you too. Armored with friendship bracelets, a tribute<\/a> Swift\u2019s fans pay in reference to her 2022 album \u201cMidnights<\/a>,\u201d and always on beat with the fan chants,<\/a> or lines fans sing-shout in between Swift\u2019s lyrics, they transformed movie theaters into concert-venue hybrids<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Beyonce\u2019s movie, released in December, debuted with $21 million<\/a> in North American sales and has now earned nearly $44 million<\/a> around the world.\u00a0<\/p>\n AMC\u2019s CEO said that it\u2019s how much the movies helped its revenue, which grew by 11.5% despite \u201ca diminished box office overall,\u201d is \u201cparticularly noteworthy,\u201d according to The Hollywood Reporter.<\/a> All of the revenue growth, he said, \u201cis attributable to our having shown these two movies in our theatres in the U.S and internationally.\u201d<\/p>\n Yet stormy waters, muddied by low box office numbers, writer strikes, and the company\u2019s heavy debt load could still make this a turbulent year. Alicia Reese, an analyst at Wedbush<\/a>, a wealth management firm, said it could be a \u201cbumpy\u201d second quarter.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThe January\/February box office was down 45% vs. 2019 but it was likely the most difficult period of the year,\u201d she wrote in the note, and added that she expects a rough second quarter, followed by \u201ceasing headwinds,\u201d in the third quarter and \u201cnormalization,\u201d in the fourth.\u00a0<\/p>\n Aron said he believes the box office will strengthen again in March, when Dune 2 will also be released, and expects the industry box office to grow by $1 to $2 billion over 2024, according<\/a> to The Hollywood Reporter.\u00a0<\/p>\n The company is also dealing with debt. \u201cAMC must cover its interest payments and leases while chipping away at the $3 billion in debt repayments coming due over the next three years,\u201d she wrote.\u00a0<\/p>\n Last quarter was difficult \u201cdue to release slate delays driven by the Hollywood labor strikes,\u201d Reese wrote. The labor strikes, which started last May<\/a>, has taken a multibillion-dollar economic toll on the industry that will take months to tally, Reuters reported<\/a>. The strikes caused delays of several movie releases<\/a>, including Dune 2, and in a call with analysts, Aron called<\/a> the superstars\u2019 films an \u201cunanticipated gift.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\nSubscribe to the CFO Daily newsletter to keep up with the trends, issues, and executives shaping corporate finance. Sign up<\/a> for free.<\/div>\n