The refinancing of debt and a raised credit rating by S&P Global has AMC Entertainment Holdings AMC CEO Adam Aron increasingly optimistic than ever about the long-term outlook of the movie theater stock.
What Happened: While speaking at the Variety Entertainment and Technology Summit Thursday, Aron shared the impact of the strong summer box office and refinancing as key catalysts for the company.
"I'm a relieved human being," Aron said of the refinancing. "In July, we were able to announce that we'd worked agreements with 150 different lending institutions that will refinance most of our long-term debt and push our maturities."
Perhaps the “most important thing” AMC did was negotiate with lenders to refinance its debt again in 2026, “pushing it out further than 2030," Aron added.
The AMC CEO also referenced IMAX CEO Rich Gelfound in his keynote, saying the executive is "sure that Harry Houdini works at AMC," due to the company's magic-like ability to survive against the odds.
Along with refinancing debt, Aron shared the impact that several strong box office blockbusters could have on future financials.
Box office earnings from June to September were more than double the previous five months. They went from $1.5 billion to $3.5 billion, Aron added.
Among the movies that helped were "Inside Out 2," "Despicable Me 4" and "Deadpool & Wolverine."
"I can tell you with such confidence that the combination of resolving our balance sheet with a rising box office means rising profitability," Aron said.
Aron said the movie industry has been playing defense in recent years. It has had to fight off the COVID-19 pandemic impact plus Hollywood labor strikes.
"We get to play on offense again."
Price Action: AMC stock is up 1% to $4.58 on Friday versus a 52-week trading range of $2.38 to $11.88. AMC stock is down 25% year-to-date, as seen on the Benzinga Pro chart below. The stock has fallen over 90% in the last five years.
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