13.05.02
IMAX Corporation Reports First Quarter Results |
(Toronto, May 2002) - IMAX Corporation (Nasdaq: IMAX; TSX: IMX) has reported net earnings of $0.32 per share for the first quarter ended March 31, 2002. The earnings from continuing operations were $0.06 per share versus a loss from continuing operations of $0.42 per share in the prior-year period.
"Our first quarter results reflect the continued improvement in our business and the effects of our lowered cost structure," said IMAX Co-Chief Executive Officers Richard L. Gelfond and Bradley J. Wechsler. "We are particularly pleased with the turnaround in attendance at our owned and operated theatre group which achieved a 63% improvement in revenues versus the first quarter of 2001 on the strength of The Walt Disney Company's Beauty and the Beast. We remain on track for a return to profitability for all of 2002 based on the improved film slate for IMAX theatres this year and our internal focus on costs."
In late March the Company introduced a technology that can convert live-action 35mm films to IMAX's 15/70 film format, transforming it into the unparalleled image and sound quality of The IMAX Experience(R). This proprietary system, known as IMAX(R) Digital Re-Mastering(TM) (IMAX(R) DMR(TM)), positions IMAX theatres to become a release window for Hollywood event films. Apollo 13: The IMAX Experience, to be released in conjunction with Universal Pictures and Imagine Entertainment in August, will be the first film to use this revolutionary technology.
Messrs. Gelfond and Wechsler continued, "The introduction of IMAX DMR, which enables any live-action 35mm film to be converted into IMAX's 15/70 film format, will help IMAX theatres become the place to see Hollywood event films and positions IMAX as the newest release window for these films. Apollo 13: The IMAX Experience will demonstrate the viability of an IMAX DMR re-release of a film and pave the way for simultaneous releases of event blockbuster films in both conventional 35mm and IMAX theatres. Our financial results, the improving health of the commercial exhibition market and the development of our breakthrough IMAX DMR technology continues to bolster our confidence in the Company's future."
During the first quarter, the Company signed leases for three new theatre systems versus none in the first quarter of 2001. In April, IMAX's first 3D space film SPACE STATION, narrated by Tom Cruise and filmed by 25 astronauts and cosmonauts, was launched with more film leases signed than any other film in the Company's 35-year history.
In the first quarter, the Company's revenues were $31.3 million as compared to $28.7 million in the prior year. Systems revenue was $20.4 million versus $16.3 million in the prior year as the Company recognized revenues on six theatre systems in the first quarter of 2002 versus three theatre systems in the first quarter of 2001. Film revenue was $6.1 million versus $9.3 million in the prior year. Other revenue was $4.8 million as compared to $3.1 million in the prior year. The Company had a reported profit of $0.32 per share for the first quarter on a fully diluted basis after extraordinary items as compared to losses of $0.45 per share in the first quarter of 2001. The Company's sales backlog was approximately $155 million at March 31, 2002, representing contracts for 58 theatre systems.
The above numbers treat the Company's former subsidiary Digital Projection International as a discontinued operation for all reported periods.
More information at www.imax.com.
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