NEW YORK (CelebrityAccess) — The Madison Square Garden Company reported strong growth in both revenue and operating income for their fiscal year 2018.
On Thursday, MSGC said that over the course of the fiscal year, they generated revenue of approximately $1.6 billion, which represents an increase of 18% as compared to the prior year.
In addition, the Company generated operating income of $18.9 million, an increase of $79.2 million, and adjusted operating income of $193.8 million, an increase of $96.2 million over the previous year’s results.
“We had a solid fiscal 2018, driven by the performance of our bookings business, the Christmas Spectacular, and sponsorships. This past year we also took important steps to position the Company for continued growth as we unveiled our plans to build state-of-the-art venues – called MSG Sphere – in Las Vegas and London, and announced the exploration of a potential separation of our entertainment and sports businesses. Looking ahead, we believe that our commitment to delivering premium live experiences for our customers and partners will continue to create long-term value for our shareholders,” said MSG Executive Chairman and CEO Jim Dolan.
At the same time, the company reported their results for the fourth quarter, which weren’t quite as rosy as the full year for MSG.
For Q4, MSG chalked up revenue of $318.0 million, which was a %4 increase from the same quarter in 2017. At the same time, they generated an operating loss of $45.4 million and an adjusted operating loss of $2.5 million, which improved on last year’s results for the same quarter by 51% and 94%, respectively.
MSG Entertainment posted revenue of $185.6, which was up by 47% from 2017. The company attributes the surge to higher event-related revenue at The Garden, the Forum and Radio City Music Hall, as well as a full quarter of operating results for their club and hospitality operation, TAO Group.
MSGE pared their operating losses by 45.7 million, with just 400,000 in losses for the quarter compared to 2018. AOI improved by $46.9 million, putting the division $7.7 million in the black for the quarter.
MSG Sports weighed on the company’s overall results, with revenue for the quarter decreasing by 26% to $132.5 million. MSGC laid the blame for the losses at the lack of any playoff-related revenue, combined with lower league distribution. However, the company did note that regular season ticket-related revenue and food, beverage, and merchandise sales decreased, in part due to three fewer Knicks and Rangers home games versus the prior year quarter.
