Madison Square Garden (NYSE:MSGS) Posts Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.32 EPS

Madison Square Garden (NYSE:MSGS) issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The company reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.66 by ($0.32), Briefing.com reports. The firm had revenue of $403.42 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $394.58 million. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.05 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from Madison Square Garden’s conference call:

• MSG Sports reported Q2 revenue of $403.4 million and Adjusted Operating Income of $29.7 million, driven by higher per?game revenue across ticketing, suites, sponsorship and food/beverage/merchandise.
• Strong fan engagement — a combined Knicks and Rangers season ticket renewal rate of ~94% — plus centennial merchandise and partnerships (e.g., Game 7, KISS) produced record single?game merch sales and higher per?cap spending.
• Refinancings extended senior secured revolver maturities to November 2030, lowered borrowing costs and increased the Knicks revolver capacity by $150 million to $425 million, enhancing liquidity and financial flexibility.
• Amended local media rights with MSG Networks reduced annual rights fees by 28% for the Knicks and 18% for the Rangers, contributing to a 4% year?over?year decline in national and local media rights fees.
• AOI growth was partially offset by higher team personnel costs (including luxury tax) and revenue?sharing expenses, and Q2 benefited from two extra home games versus prior year — a timing benefit that will reverse in the second half.

Madison Square Garden Stock Down 5.3%

Shares of MSGS traded down $15.29 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $271.97. The company had a trading volume of 300,048 shares, compared to its average volume of 203,979. Madison Square Garden has a 1-year low of $173.26 and a 1-year high of $298.97. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $258.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $228.26. The stock has a market cap of $6.53 billion, a PE ratio of -277.52 and a beta of 0.61.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Madison Square Garden

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Amundi increased its holdings in shares of Madison Square Garden by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 5,643 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,091,000 after buying an additional 252 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in Madison Square Garden by 8.0% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 27,147 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,286,000 after acquiring an additional 2,006 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Madison Square Garden by 28.2% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 24,807 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,830,000 after purchasing an additional 5,452 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association purchased a new position in shares of Madison Square Garden in the 1st quarter worth about $210,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in shares of Madison Square Garden by 10.8% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,055 shares of the company’s stock valued at $400,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.94% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Madison Square Garden in a report on Monday, December 29th. Wolfe Research lowered shares of Madison Square Garden from an “outperform” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Madison Square Garden from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Madison Square Garden from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on Madison Square Garden from $285.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $261.33.

About Madison Square Garden

Madison Square Garden Sports Corp (NYSE: MSGS) is a leading sports and entertainment holding company focused on professional sports franchises and related media assets. The company owns and operates teams such as the NBA’s New York Knicks, the NHL’s New York Rangers and the WNBA’s New York Liberty. Through these flagship franchises, MSG Sports offers a range of products and services including ticketing, premium seating and sponsorship opportunities, targeting fans in the New York metropolitan area and beyond.

In addition to team operations, Madison Square Garden Sports Corp holds a majority stake in MSG Networks, a regional cable network that broadcasts live sporting events, news and original programming.