LYV Live Nation Entertainment Inc

LOS ANGELES, Feb. 20, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- 

"2024 was live music's biggest year yet, as artists toured the world and fans turned out in record numbers. 2025 is shaping up to be even bigger thanks to a deep global concert pipeline, with more stadium shows on the books than ever before. To help artists perform to fans everywhere, we remain focused on building new music-centric venues, which make more live music memories possible and help drive our double-digit operating income and AOI growth in 2025, and compound at this level for years to come. At the same time, we're investing back into the industry for those who create the music, as our investments in artists have more than doubled in the last five years, and we will continue to find new ways to support them while enhancing the fan experience." –Michael Rapino, President and CEO, Live Nation Entertainment

GLOBAL FAN DEMAND POWERS LIVE MUSIC'S BIGGEST YEAR YET
(versus prior year, reported FX)

• Operating income of $825 million
• Adjusted operating income of $2.15 billion
• Adjusted operating income for concerts at a record high, up 65% to $530 million with margins of 2.8%
• Concert attendance up 4%, with 151 million fans attending over 50k Live Nation events, up 9%
• Sponsorship adjusted operating income of $764 million, up 13%

2025 KICKS OFF WITH MORE ARTISTS ON THE ROAD
(through mid-February vs same period last year unless otherwise noted)

• Stadium show pipeline up 60%
• 65 million tickets sold for Live Nation concerts in 2025, up double-digits led by stadium and international activity
• Year-end event-related deferred revenue of $3.3 billion, up 11%
• Ticketmaster transacted ticketing volume for 2025 shows up 3% to 106 million tickets, with concerts activity driving the vast majority of growth
• 75% of expected 2025 sponsorship committed, up double-digits

VIEW HOW OUR OPERATING RESULTS COMPARE TO PAST QUARTERS IN THE 4Q24 TRENDED RESULTS GRID:
https://investors.livenationentertainment.com/financial-information/financial-results 

CONCERTS DELIVERS RECORD REVENUE AND PROFITABILITY FOR 2024 (VS FY 2023)

• Revenue of $19 billion, up 2%
• AOI of $530 million, up 65%
• Record AOI margin of 2.8%
• Arena and amphitheater activity drove fan count to 151 million, despite 30% fewer stadium shows

STRONG DEMAND GLOBALLY IN 2025
(through mid-February vs same period last year)

• U.S. stadium and arena tours selling through over 75% in first week on-sale at a higher rate than last year
• Artists who are touring in 2025 and recently toured in 2022-2024 are averaging double-digit growth in tickets sold per show and gross revenue per show

2024 INVESTMENTS AT VENUE NATION (VS FY 2023)

• 60 million fans attended shows in our operated venues, up double-digits, with North America and Latin America driving almost all growth
• Built and refurbished three major venues hosting a combined two million fans in 2024, delivering IRRs at or above planned levels
• Revenue from premium offerings in amphitheaters up over 20%
• Ancillary per fan spend at major festivals of 100k fans or more grew double-digits, driven by VIP ticket upgrades and increased food and beverage sales

SCALING GLOBAL VENUE EXPANSION

• Expect to add 20 large venues (e.g., stadiums, arenas, amphitheaters, and large theaters) globally through 2026, delivering run-rate of six to seven million incremental fans
  • Major projects include stadiums in Bogotá and Toronto, seven amphitheaters, and nine large theaters
• At least five million more fans expected to attend shows in our operated venues in 2025, benefiting from the addition of new venues in 2024 and 2025

TICKETMASTER FINISHES YEAR WITH A RECORD Q4

• Q4 revenue of $841 million, up 14% year-on-year, for full year revenue of $3 billion
• Q4 AOI of $311 million, up 32% year-on-year, for full year AOI of $1.1 billion
• Full-year AOI margin in the high 30s, consistent with prior years
• 23 million net new enterprise tickets signed in 2024, with two-thirds from international markets

MOMENTUM ACCELERATING INTO 2025
(through mid-February vs same period last year)

• Over five million net new enterprise tickets signed, with approximately 80% from international markets

GLOBAL SPONSORSHIP GROWTH CONTINUES (VS FY 2023)

• Revenue of $1.2 billion, up 9%
• AOI of $764 million, up 13%
• Full-year AOI margin in the low 60s, consistent with prior years
• International markets up double-digits driven by festivals in Latin America, including Rock in Rio, along with growth in European festivals
• Festivals generating measurable results for our brand partners: fans were 8x more likely to purchase a brand in the future if they visited an onsite activation¹
• The number of new strategic clients increased 20% while we continued to deepen and add to our portfolio of 1,500 brand partners and expanded relationships with several partners including Cisco, Bacardi, Coca-Cola, and Hulu

MORE AHEAD FOR 2025
(through mid-February vs same period last year)

• 75% of expected 2025 sponsorship committed, up double-digits

¹Source: 2024 Post Festival Survey; Includes festivals through 11/8/24; Base: Festival attendees with household income $200K+

CONTINUED FOCUS ON VENUE EXPANSION

• 2025 capital expenditures estimated to be $900 million to $1 billion
  • Of this, $700 to $800 million is related to venue expansion and enhancement plans
  • Approximately $250 million of funding from joint-venture partners, sponsorship agreements, and other sources, reducing cash flow requirements
  • Maintenance capex spend remains consistent with historical levels
• Full-year AOI to free cash flow—adjusted conversion expected to be consistent with historical levels
• Leverage remains unchanged with lower expected annual cash interest expense following $1 billion convertible notes offering in December

ADDITIONAL FINANCIAL INFORMATION

• Q2 and Q3 stadium show activity expected to be the primary growth driver for 2025
• Foreign exchange movement, primarily in Latin American currencies, is expected to impact Q1 operating income by low-teens and revenue and AOI by mid-to-high single digits based at current rates. The magnitude of the impact is expected to be the greatest in Q1, given our seasonality and the timing of activity in Latin American markets
• Full year depreciation and amortization expected to increase by approximately $75 million compared to last year
• Full year accretion and non-controlling interest expected to increase in line with our AOI growth
• 2025 share count not expected to change materially from 2024

The company will webcast a teleconference today, February 20, 2025, at 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time to discuss its financial performance, operational matters and potentially other material developments. Interested parties should visit the "News / Events" section of the company's website at investors.livenationentertainment.com to listen to the webcast. Supplemental statistical and financial information to be provided on the call, if any, will be posted to the "Financial Info" section of the website. A replay of the webcast will also be available on the Live Nation website. The link to the 4Q24 Trended Results Grid is provided above for convenience and such grid is not a part of, or incorporated into, this press release or any SEC filings that include this press release.

Notice Regarding Financial Statements
The company has provided certain financial statements at the end of this press release for reference. These financial statements should be read in conjunction with the full financial statements, and the notes thereto, set forth in the company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024 to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission today and available on the SEC's website at sec.gov.

About Live Nation Entertainment: 
Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE: LYV) is the world's leading live entertainment company comprised of global market leaders: Ticketmaster, Live Nation Concerts, and Live Nation Media & Sponsorship. For additional information, visit investors.livenationentertainment.com.

Forward-Looking Statements, Non-GAAP Financial Measures and Reconciliations:
Certain statements in this press release, including the Supplemental Information that follows, constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to statements regarding the company's belief that 2025 is shaping up to be even bigger than 2024 due to a deep global concert pipeline, with more stadium shows on the books than ever before; the company's belief that its focus on building new music-centric venues will help drive double-digit operating income and adjusted operating income growth in 2025, and compound at this level for years to come; the expected level of committed sponsorship in 2025; the strength of 2025 concerts demand globally; the anticipated scaling of global venue expansion efforts; the expected increase in fans attending shows in the company's operated venues in 2025; the company's expectation that it will add 20 large venues through 2026, delivering a run-rate of six to seven million incremental fans; Ticketmaster's momentum accelerating into 2025; anticipated 2025 capital expenditures; the company's expectation that adjusted operating income to free cash flow—adjusted conversion for 2025 will be consistent with historical levels; the company's expectation that annual cash interest expense will be lower following its $1 billion convertible notes offering in December 2024; the expectation that second and third quarter stadium activity will be the primary driver of growth for 2025; expectations for the impact of foreign exchange on operating income, revenue and adjusted operating income for the first quarter of 2025 at current rates, with the magnitude of the impact expected to be greatest in the first quarter; expectation for full year depreciation and amortization compared to 2024; expectations for annual accretion and non-controlling interest in 2025; and 2025 share count expectations.

Live Nation wishes to caution you that there are some known and unknown factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, including but not limited to operational challenges in achieving strategic objectives and executing on the company's plans, the risk that the company's markets do not evolve as anticipated, the potential impact of any economic slowdown and operational challenges associated with selling tickets and staging events.

Live Nation refers you to the documents it files from time to time with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC, specifically the section titled "Item 1A. Risk Factors" of the company's most recent Annual Report filed on Form 10-K, and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and its Current Reports on Form 8-K, which contain and identify other important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in the company's projections or forward-looking statements. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements which speak only as of the date on which they are made. All subsequent written and oral forward-looking statements by or concerning Live Nation are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements above. Live Nation does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements because of new information, future events or otherwise.

This press release contains certain non-GAAP financial measures as defined by SEC Regulation G. A reconciliation of each such measure to its most directly comparable GAAP financial measure, together with an explanation of why management believes that these non-GAAP financial measures provide useful information to investors, is provided herein.

Adjusted Operating Income (Loss), or AOI, is a non-GAAP financial measure that we define as operating income (loss) before certain acquisition expenses(including ongoing legal costs stemming from the Ticketmaster merger, changes in the fair value of accrued acquisition-related contingent consideration obligations, and acquisition-related severance and compensation), amortization of non-recoupable ticketing contract advances, depreciation and amortization (including goodwill impairment), loss (gain) on disposal of operating assets, and stock-based compensation expense. We also exclude from AOI the impact of estimated or realized liabilities for settlements or damages arising out of the Astroworld matter that exceed our estimated insurance recovery, due to the significant and non-recurring nature of the matter. Ongoing legal costs associated with defense of these claims, such as attorney fees, are not excluded from AOI. We use AOI to evaluate the performance of our operating segments. We believe that information about AOI assists investors by allowing them to evaluate changes in the operating results of our portfolio of businesses separate from non-operational factors that affect net income (loss), thus providing insights into both operations and the other factors that affect reported results. AOI is not calculated or presented in accordance with GAAP. A limitation of the use of AOI as a performance measure is that it does not reflect the periodic costs of certain amortizing assets used in generating revenue in our business. Accordingly, AOI should be considered in addition to, and not as a substitute for, operating income (loss), net income (loss), and other measures of financial performance reported in accordance with GAAP. Furthermore, this measure may vary among other companies; thus, AOI as presented herein may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies.

AOI margin is a non-GAAP financial measure that we calculate by dividing AOI by revenue. We use AOI margin to evaluate the performance of our operating segments. We believe that information about AOI margin assists investors by allowing them to evaluate changes in the operating results of our portfolio of businesses separate from non-operational factors that affect net income (loss), thus providing insights into both operations and the other factors that affect reported results. AOI margin is not calculated or presented in accordance with GAAP. A limitation of the use of AOI margin as a performance measure is that it does not reflect the periodic costs of certain amortizing assets used in generating revenue in our business. Accordingly, AOI margin should be considered in addition to, and not as a substitute for, operating income (loss) margin, and other measures of financial performance reported in accordance with GAAP. Furthermore, this measure may vary among other companies; thus, AOI margin as presented herein may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies.

Constant Currency is a non-GAAP financial measure when applied to a GAAP financial measure. We calculate currency impacts as the difference between current period activity translated using the current period's currency exchange rates and the comparable prior period's currency exchange rates. We present constant currency information to provide a framework for assessing how our underlying businesses performed excluding the effect of foreign currency rate fluctuations.

Free Cash Flow — Adjusted, or FCF, is a non-GAAP financial measure that we define as net cash provided by (used in) operating activities less changes in operating assets and liabilities, less maintenance capital expenditures, less distributions to noncontrolling interest partners. We use FCF among other measures, to evaluate the ability of operations to generate cash that is available for purposes other than maintenance capital expenditures. We believe that information about FCF provides investors with an important perspective on the cash available to service debt, make acquisitions, and for revenue generating capital expenditures. FCF is not calculated or presented in accordance with GAAP. A limitation of the use of FCF as a performance measure is that it does not necessarily represent funds available for operations and is not necessarily a measure of our ability to fund our cash needs. Accordingly, FCF should be considered in addition to, and not as a substitute for, net cash provided by (used in) operating activities and other measures of financial performance reported in accordance with GAAP. Furthermore, this measure may vary among other companies; thus, FCF as presented herein may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies.

Free Cash is a non-GAAP financial measure that we define as cash and cash equivalents less ticketing-related client funds, less event-related deferred revenue, less accrued expenses due to artists and cash collected on behalf of others, plus event-related prepaids. We use free cash as a proxy for how much cash we have available to, among other things, optionally repay debt balances, make acquisitions and fund revenue generating capital expenditures. Free cash is not calculated or presented in accordance with GAAP. A limitation of the use of free cash as a performance measure is that it does not necessarily represent funds available from operations and it is not necessarily a measure of our ability to fund our cash needs. Accordingly, free cash should be considered in addition to, and not as a substitute for, cash and cash equivalents and other measures of financial performance reported in accordance with GAAP. Furthermore, this measure may vary among other companies; thus, free cash as presented herein may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies.

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SOURCE Live Nation Entertainment