TORONTO — Cineplex Galaxy Income Fund (TSX:CGX.UN) chief executive Ellis Jacob says more Canadians went to the movies during the second quarter, which pushed revenues to record levels at the exhibitor, and more than tripled profits.
“We attribute this growth to the wide and varied appeal of the movies on screen starting with Fast & Furious and Monsters vs. Aliens, which performed very well in April, a month that historically has not featured strong releases,” Jacob said during a conference call on Thursday
“In May, every weekend saw the release of a major blockbuster, which included four of the top five performing films during the quarter.”
The Toronto-based fund says it recorded net income of $19.9 million for the quarter ended June 30, more than three times higher than year-earlier profits of $6 million.
The earnings were equivalent to 62.8 cents distributable cash per unit, nearly 56 per cent higher than the 40.3 cents per unit a year earlier.
Cineplex booked revenue of $248.6 million, the highest since the fund’s inception and an increase from revenue of $209.3 million posted a year ago.
The results were helped by a variety of premium-priced events, including 3D movies like Coraline and IMAX screenings of Star Trek.
Overall, attendance revenue jumped 16.2 per cent for the quarter to $18.2 million.
Cineplex’s media division, which sells ad space inside its facilities and commercial spots before its movies, reported $16.3 million in profits from $14.1 million.