How Bad Was The Weekend Box Office? Moviegoers Didn't Want To Return To Neverland

• This weekend’s box office numbers fell well short of last year’s weekend total.
• “The Martian” was the big weekend winner, while “Pan” was the biggest loser.
• October comps could continue to be difficult, but November and December promise to be strong months at the box office.

This weekend’s box office numbers came in well short of last year’s numbers for the same weekend. How bad was it? Here’s a breakdown of the weekend.

The Numbers

This weekend’s top 10 films grossed $106 million, down 19 percent year-over-year. While this number may seem disappointing at first glance, it actually came is slightly ahead of expectations for the weekend.

The Top 5

“The Martian” was once again the big winner, grossing $37.0 million. “Hotel Transylvania 2” came in second place with $20.3 million, “Pan” finished third with $15.5 million, “The Intern” was fourth at $8.7 million and “Sicario” rounded out the top five at $7.4 million.

Time Warner Inc TWX’s “Pan” was the biggest disappointment on the weekend, falling well short of expectations, while Twenty-First Century Fox Inc FOXA’s “The Martian” continued to surprise to the upside.

Looking Ahead

FBR & Co analyst Barton Crockett projects that Walt Disney Co DIS’s “Bridge of Spies” will be the movie to watch next weekend. “We see ‘Bridge of Spies’… crossing inro first with a debut of $27.1 million,” he wrote.

MKM Partners analyst Eric Handler believes October comps will continue to be weak this year, but is calling for renewed strength in November and December. “We are projecting 10% box office growth in 4Q15,” he added.

Both FBR and MKM see plenty of buying opportunities in the cinema states. Both firms have Buy/Outperform ratings on AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc AMC, Cinemark Holdings Inc CNK and Time Warner.

Disclosure: the author holds no position in the stocks mentioned.