MADISON SQUARE GARDEN ENTERTAINMENT CORP. REPORTS FISCAL 2024 THIRD QUARTER RESULTS

FY24 Revenue Range Narrowed to $940-950 Million, as Compared to Prior Range of $930-950 Million 

FY24 Operating Income Range Increased to $100-110 Million, Versus Prior $95-105 Million 

FY24 AOI Range Increased to $200-210 Million, as Compared to $195-205 Million Previously ⁽¹⁾

NEW YORK, May 9, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp. (NYSE: MSGE) (“MSG Entertainment” or the “Company”) today reported financial results for the fiscal third quarter ended March 31, 2024.

The fiscal 2024 third quarter was highlighted by the continued strength of the Company’s bookings business, led by robust growth in the number of concerts held at the Company’s venues. With these positive results, the Company remains on track to achieve a low double-digit percentage increase in the number of bookings events in fiscal 2024. During the fiscal 2024 third quarter, the Company also continued to host the New York Knicks (“Knicks”) and New York Rangers (“Rangers”) 2023-24 regular season home games at the Madison Square Garden Arena (“The Garden”), which included five additional Knicks home games as compared to the prior year quarter.

Financial results for the three and nine months ended March 31, 2024 reflect the Company on a fully standalone basis. Results for the three and nine months ended March 31, 2023, which were prior to the spin-off from Sphere Entertainment Co. (“Sphere Entertainment”), are presented in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) for the preparation of carve-out financial statements. These prior year results do not include all of the expenses that would have been incurred by MSG Entertainment had it been a standalone company for the periods presented. Therefore, results for the three and nine months ended March 31, 2024 are not fully comparable with results for the prior year period.

For the fiscal 2024 third quarter, the Company reported revenues of $228.3 million, an increase of $27.1 million, or 13%, as compared to the prior year quarter. In addition, the Company reported operating income of $16.8 million and adjusted operating income of $38.5 million, decreases of $7.9 million and $11.6 million, respectively, as compared to the prior year quarter.⁽¹⁾

Executive Chairman and CEO James L. Dolan said, “Our business continues to outperform our original expectations for fiscal 2024, and we are on track to generate robust growth in our first full year as a standalone public company. Looking ahead, we remain confident in the strength of our assets and our ability to generate long-term value for our shareholders.”

Entertainment Offerings, Arena License Fees and Other Leasing⁽²⁾
Fiscal 2024 third quarter revenues from entertainment offerings of $146.2 million increased $17.0 million, or 13%, as compared to the prior year period, primarily due to higher event-related revenues and revenues subject to the sharing of economics with MSG Sports pursuant to the Arena License Agreements. 

• Event-related revenues increased $10.7 million, as compared to the prior year quarter, primarily due to an increase in the number of concerts at the Company’s venues, partially offset by the absence of a marquee sporting event that took place in the prior year quarter.
• Revenues subject to the sharing of economics with MSG Sports pursuant to the Arena License Agreements increased $6.8 million, primarily due to higher suite license fee revenues as compared to the prior year quarter.

Fiscal 2024 third quarter arena license fees and other leasing revenues of $36.7 million increased $4.7 million, or 15%, as compared to the prior year period, primarily due to higher arena license fees, the result of five more Knicks games played at The Garden, as compared to the prior year quarter.

Fiscal 2024 third quarter direct operating expenses associated with entertainment offerings, arena license fees and other leasing of $113.0 million increased $22.7 million, or 25%, as compared to the prior year quarter. The increase reflected higher event-related expenses of $12.0 million, primarily due to the increase in the number of concerts at the Company’s venues and, to a lesser extent, higher per-concert expenses, both as compared to the prior year quarter. In addition, expenses associated with the sharing of economics with MSG Sports pursuant to the Arena License Agreements increased $6.0 million, primarily due to higher expenses incurred as a result of the increase in suite license fee revenues, while venue operating costs increased $2.6 million, both as compared to the prior year quarter.

Food, Beverage and Merchandise⁽²⁾
Fiscal 2024 third quarter food, beverage and merchandise revenues of $45.4 million increased $5.4 million, or 14%, as compared to the prior year period. This was primarily due to the increase in the number of concerts held at the Company’s venues and the impact of five more Knicks home games, as compared to the prior year period, partially offset by lower per-concert food and beverage revenues, which reflects a mix shift to more concerts at the Company’s theaters during the current year quarter.

Fiscal 2024 third quarter food, beverage and merchandise direct operating expenses of $29.0 million increased $4.2 million, or 17%, as compared to the prior year quarter, primarily driven by the related increase in food and beverage revenues.

Selling, General and Administrative Expenses
Fiscal 2024 third quarter selling, general and administrative expenses of $53.9 million increased $9.8 million, or 22%, as compared with the prior year period. Fiscal 2024 third quarter results reflect the Company on a fully standalone basis. Results for the fiscal 2023 third quarter reflect the allocation of corporate and administrative costs based on the accounting requirements for the preparation of carve-out financial statements. These results do not include all of the expenses that would have been incurred by MSG Entertainment had it been a standalone company in the prior year period. This was the primary driver of the overall increase in selling, general and administrative expenses, partially offset by the impact of the Company’s transition services agreement with Sphere Entertainment Co.

Operating Income and Adjusted Operating Income
Fiscal 2024 third quarter operating income of $16.8 million decreased $7.9 million, or 32%, and adjusted operating income of $38.5 million decreased $11.6 million, or 23%, both as compared to the prior year quarter. The decrease in operating income and adjusted operating income was primarily due to higher selling, general and administrative expenses as discussed above. 

Financial Guidance
As a result of the positive momentum across its operations, the Company is narrowing its fiscal 2024 guidance for revenues and increasing its fiscal 2024 guidance for operating income and adjusted operating income. The Company currently expects the following:

• Revenues of $940 million to $950 million, as compared to its prior range of $930 to $950 million.
• Operating income of $100 million to $110 million, as compared to the prior range of $95 to $105 million.
• Adjusted operating income of $200 million to $210 million, as compared to the prior range of $195 to $205 million. The Company’s AOI range now includes approximately $25 million in non-cash operating lease revenue related to the Company’s Arena License Agreements with MSG Sports.⁽³⁾

An updated version of the MSG Entertainment investor presentation is now available at investor.msgentertainment.com.

About Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp.
Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp. (MSG Entertainment) is a leader in live entertainment, delivering unforgettable experiences while forging deep connections with diverse and passionate audiences. The Company’s portfolio includes a collection of world-renowned venues – New York’s Madison Square Garden, The Theater at Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall, and Beacon Theatre; and The Chicago Theatre – that showcase a broad array of sporting events, concerts, family shows, and special events for millions of guests annually. In addition, the Company features the original production, the Christmas Spectacular Starring the Radio City Rockettes, which has been a holiday tradition for 90 years. More information is available at www.msgentertainment.com.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures
The Company has amended the definition of adjusted operating income so that the impact of the non-cash portion of operating lease revenue related to the Company’s Arena License Agreements with MSG Sports is no longer excluded in all periods presented.

We define adjusted operating income (loss), which is a non-GAAP financial measure, as operating income (loss) excluding (i) depreciation, amortization and impairments of property and equipment, goodwill and other intangible assets, (ii) share-based compensation expense or benefit, (iii) restructuring charges or credits, (iv) merger, spin-off, and acquisition-related costs, including merger-related litigation expenses, (v) gains or losses on sales or dispositions of businesses and associated settlements, (vi) the impact of purchase accounting adjustments related to business acquisitions, (vii) gains and losses related to the remeasurement of liabilities under the executive deferred compensation plan, and (viii) amortization for capitalized cloud computing arrangement costs. We believe that the exclusion of share-based compensation expense or benefit allows investors to better track the performance of the various operating units of our business without regard to the settlement of an obligation that is not expected to be made in cash. We eliminate merger, spin-off, and acquisition-related costs, when applicable, because the Company does not consider such costs to be indicative of the ongoing operating performance of the Company as they result from an event that is of a non-recurring nature, thereby enhancing comparability. In addition, management believes that the exclusion of gains and losses related to the remeasurement of liabilities under the executive deferred compensation plan, provides investors with a clearer picture of the Company’s operating performance given that, in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles, gains and losses related to the remeasurement of liabilities under the executive deferred compensation plan are recognized in Operating (income) loss whereas gains and losses related to the remeasurement of the assets under the executive deferred compensation plan, which are equal to and therefore fully offset the gains and losses related to the remeasurement of liabilities, are recognized in Other income (expense), net, which is not reflected in Operating income (loss).

We believe adjusted operating income (loss) is an appropriate measure for evaluating the operating performance of the Company on a consolidated and combined basis. Adjusted operating income (loss) and similar measures with similar titles are common performance measures used by investors and analysts to analyze our performance. Internally, we use revenues and adjusted operating income (loss) as the most important indicators of our business performance, and evaluate management’s effectiveness with specific reference to these indicators. Adjusted operating income (loss) should be viewed as a supplement to and not a substitute for operating income (loss), net income (loss), cash flows from operating activities, and other measures of performance and/or liquidity presented in accordance with GAAP. Since adjusted operating income (loss) is not a measure of performance calculated in accordance with GAAP, this measure may not be comparable to similar measures with similar titles used by other companies. For a reconciliation of operating income (loss) to adjusted operating income (loss), please see page 6 of this release.

Forward-Looking Statements
This press release may contain statements that constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Investors are cautioned that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance or results and involve risks and uncertainties, and that actual results, developments or events may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, including financial community perceptions of the Company and its business, operations, financial condition and the industries in which it operates and the factors described in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the sections titled “Risk Factors” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” contained therein. The Company disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained herein.

Contacts:
Ari Danes, CFA
Senior Vice President, Investor Relations, Financial Communications & Treasury
Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp.
(212) 465-6072

Justin Blaber
Vice President, Financial Communications
Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp.
(212) 465-6109

Conference Call Information:
The conference call will be Webcast live today at 10:00 a.m. ET at investor.msgentertainment.com 
Conference call dial-in number is 888-660-6386 / Conference ID Number 8020251
Conference call replay number is 800-770-2030 / Conference ID Number 8020251 until May 16, 2024

MADISON SQUARE GARDEN ENTERTAINMENT CORP.
ADJUSTMENTS TO RECONCILE OPERATING INCOME (LOSS) TO
ADJUSTED OPERATING INCOME (LOSS)
(in thousands)
(Unaudited)

The following is a description of the adjustments to operating income in arriving at adjusted operating income as described in this earnings release:

• Depreciation and amortization. This adjustment eliminates depreciation and amortization of property and equipment and intangible assets in all periods.
• Share-based compensation. This adjustment eliminates the compensation expense relating to restricted stock units and stock options granted under the Company’s Employee Stock Plan, Sphere Entertainment’s Employee Stock Plan, the Company’s Non-Employee Director Plan and Sphere Entertainment’s Non-Employee Director Plan in all periods.
• Loss (gains), net on dispositions. This adjustment eliminates the impact of gains or losses from the disposition of assets or businesses in all periods.
• Restructuring charges. This adjustment eliminates costs related to termination benefits provided to certain corporate executives and employees.
• Merger, spin-off, and acquisition-related costs. This adjustment eliminates costs related to mergers, spin-offs and acquisitions, including merger-related litigation expenses, in all periods.
• Amortization for capitalized cloud computing arrangement costs. This adjustment eliminates amortization of capitalized cloud computing arrangement costs.
• Remeasurement of deferred compensation plan liabilities. This adjustment eliminates the impact of gains and losses related to the remeasurement of liabilities under the executive deferred compensation plan.

SOURCE Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp.