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AMC said its second quarter was the strongest in company history, with revenue up 14.2% year over year to about $1.6 billion, adjusted EBITDA up 70% to $321.4 million, and free cash flow of $190.1 million.
Results were boosted by a stronger box office and higher attendance, as AMC welcomed more than 71 million guests worldwide. Management also highlighted record per-patron spending, with food, beverage and merchandise sales rising 15.3% globally.
The company continued to improve its balance sheet by refinancing debt, converting some exchangeable debt to equity and lowering annual interest expense. AMC said these moves leave it with no major debt maturities before 2029 and support its goal of reaching free cash flow positivity.
AMC Entertainment (NYSE:AMC) reported what executives described as the strongest quarterly results in the company’s 106-year history, with record revenue, record adjusted EBITDA and sharply improved free cash flow in the second quarter of 2026.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Adam Aron said more than 71 million guests visited AMC and Odeon theaters worldwide during the April-to-June period, up 13.5% from a year earlier. Total revenue increased 14.2% year over year to approximately $1.6 billion, while adjusted EBITDA rose 70% to $321.4 million, surpassing $300 million in a quarter for the first time, according to the company.
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“In AMC’s entire 106-year history, there has never been a quarter like this one,” Aron said on the company’s earnings call. He added that both revenue and adjusted EBITDA exceeded Wall Street expectations.
Free cash flow for the quarter was $190.1 million, and AMC ended June with $778 million of cash on hand, excluding restricted cash.
Box Office Strength Boosts Results
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AMC executives pointed to a stronger theatrical slate as a key driver of the quarter. Aron said the domestic industry box office reached $2.99 billion in the second quarter, the highest second quarter in seven years and, based on his review of the data, the fifth-best quarter in the past 50 years.
Six films from Universal, Lionsgate, A24 and Disney each opened domestically to more than $75 million during the period, Aron said. AMC’s domestic ticket revenue rose 11.4%, ahead of the 10.7% increase in the overall domestic box office, while European attendance increased 18% year over year.
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Chief Financial Officer Sean Goodman said AMC’s performance was broad-based across its global circuit. In the United States, adjusted EBITDA increased 57.5% to $285.6 million. In Europe, adjusted EBITDA increased 337% to $35.8 million. Goodman noted that international revenue and EBITDA benefited by about 2% from European currency appreciation against the U.S. dollar.
Food and beverage and merchandise sales increased 15.3% globally, while “other revenues” increased 16.1%, Aron said. Goodman added that food and beverage revenue per patron and total revenue per patron reached all-time highs in both the domestic and international businesses.
Margins Improve as Costs Remain Contained
AMC’s adjusted EBITDA margin rose to 20.1% in the second quarter from 13.6% a year earlier. Goodman said roughly $200 million of incremental revenue generated $131.9 million of additional adjusted EBITDA, representing about 66% flow-through.
Aron attributed the margin expansion to rising revenue and cost controls across AMC’s theaters and corporate operations. In response to an analyst question, Aron said the company may not repeat the same level of expense containment every quarter, but management intends to remain focused on keeping costs down.
“We’re going to be maniacal in continuing to try to keep our costs down,” Aron said.
Goodman said second-quarter 2026 general and administrative expenses benefited from an approximately $5.5 million credit related to insurance recoveries.
Balance Sheet Actions Reduce Debt and Interest Expense
Executives also highlighted progress on AMC’s balance sheet. Aron said the company has $1.7 billion less debt than it had at the end of 2020 and does not expect significant debt maturities before 2029.
Goodman said AMC refinanced $400 million of debt due in 2027, extending the maturity by four years. The company also eliminated approximately $155.8 million of exchangeable debt due in 2030 through conversion into equity.
AMC completed a $150 million at-the-market equity offering, raising more than $85 million of gross proceeds during the second quarter, Goodman said. The company also recently completed a $200 million registered direct equity offering with several institutional investors. Following that transaction, AMC exercised its right to redeem the remaining $125.5 million of 6.8% senior subordinated notes due in 2027, with redemption scheduled for July 24, 2026.
Goodman said the refinancing and repayment actions reduced go-forward annual cash interest expense by approximately $16 million. He added that lower leverage ratios are expected to trigger interest-rate reductions on about 75% of AMC’s debt, lowering annual interest expense by approximately $51 million.
In response to a question about leverage, Goodman said AMC ultimately would like to reach around a three-times leverage level, though he acknowledged the company is not there yet. He said leverage has improved from a double-digit level to less than 6.5 times.
Premium Formats, Loyalty Programs Remain Strategic Focus
AMC executives said loyalty programs and premium formats remain central to the company’s strategy. Aron said more than 40 million U.S. households have participated in AMC Stubs, and Stubs members accounted for just over 50% of AMC’s U.S. guest count in the second quarter.
AMC’s A-List subscription program ended the quarter with more than 1.1 million members, more than double its membership five years earlier, Aron said. A-List members accounted for about 20% of AMC’s U.S. patronage in the quarter.
Goodman said AMC closed seven theaters during the quarter and added six new premium large format auditoriums and 25 new XL auditoriums. Since 2020, AMC has closed 225 locations and opened 66, reducing its global theater count by 159 locations, or about 16% of its circuit. Over the same period, the company has added 77 premium large format auditoriums and 193 XL auditoriums.
Aron said AMC and Odeon now operate about 750 premium or enhanced auditoriums globally, including IMAX, Dolby, iSENSE, PRIME, ScreenX, 4DX and XL screens. He said those auditoriums represent about 8% of AMC’s screen count but generated more than 50% of AMC’s ticket gross for “The Odyssey” over the weekend discussed on the call.
AMC expects 2026 net capital expenditures of $200 million to $235 million. Goodman said the company will remain disciplined and that future capital spending will depend on box office expectations and project-level returns.
Management Expresses Optimism for 2026 Slate
Looking ahead, Aron cited the opening of Universal Pictures and Christopher Nolan’s “The Odyssey,” which he said had a media-reported $124 million domestic opening weekend. AMC also said 4.3 million guests attended AMC and Odeon theaters from Thursday to Sunday during that weekend.
Aron said upcoming releases including Sony’s “Spider-Man: Brand New Day,” Warner Bros.’ “Dune: Part Three” and Disney’s “Avengers: Doomsday” support management’s view that 2026 could be the strongest post-pandemic year yet for the domestic and global box office.
Executives said AMC’s annual free cash flow breakeven box office level is currently around $10.4 billion. Aron said the company is “within sight” of being free cash flow positive on a 12-month basis, but is not there yet.
About AMC Entertainment (NYSE:AMC)
AMC Entertainment Holdings, Inc operates as a leading movie exhibition company, specializing in the presentation of theatrical motion pictures across a network of multiplex cinemas. The company’s core business activities encompass ticket sales, concession and refreshment services, and the licensing of premium viewing formats. AMC offers a variety of auditorium experiences, including IMAX®, Dolby Cinema™, and Cinemark’s RealD 3D systems, designed to enhance audience engagement through superior sound, visual clarity, and seating comfort.
Originally founded in 1920 with its first theatre in Kansas City, AMC has evolved into one of the largest theater chains in the world.
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The article “AMC Entertainment Q2 Earnings Call Highlights” was originally published by MarketBeat.
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