Business
National CineMedia, Inc. Reports Results for Fiscal Second Quarter 2021
Quarterly Cash Dividend Remains at $0.05 per Share Company Encouraged with the Increase in Advertising Demand Following Recent Box Office Success CENTENNIAL,
About this update from National Cinemedia, Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":"\nQuarterly Cash Dividend Remains at $0.05 per Share\n\nCompany Encouraged with the Increase in Advertising Demand Following Recent Box Office Success\n\n CENTENNIAL, Colo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--\nNational CineMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ: NCMI) (the Company), the managing member and owner of 48.2% of National CineMedia, LLC (NCM LLC), the operator of the largest cinema advertising network reaching movie audiences in the U.S., announced today consolidated results for the fiscal second quarter ended July 1, 2021.\n\nCOVID-19 Pandemic\n\nBeginning in 2021, multiple COVID-19 vaccines were approved and have been widely administered throughout the United States. As a result, during the second quarter of 2021 government restrictions lessened allowing theaters in key larger markets to fully reopen over the course of the second quarter of 2021. As of July 1, 2021, approximately 97.0% of the theaters within the Company’s network were open. With nearly all U.S. theaters reopened, multiple successful major motion pictures were released during the second quarter of 2021 resulting in the highest theater attendance since the start of the COVID-19 Pandemic. The movie slate for the remainder of 2021 and into 2022 remains packed due to the addition of the major motion pictures originally scheduled for 2020.\n\nDespite the increase in network attendance, in-theater advertising revenue for the second quarter of 2021 remained significantly below historical levels as management believes many advertisers continued to delay making commitments until they confirmed that industry attendance had achieved necessary critical mass. In addition, we were not able to participate in the 2021 advertising upfront marketplace during the summer of 2020 while theaters were closed. Given these lower revenue levels and future market uncertainties, the Company continued to manage its liquidity position through various cost-control measures during the six months ended July 1, 2021, with total operating expenses over 20% lower in the six months ended July 1, 2021, as compared to the six months ended June 25, 2020. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Company has significantly reduced payroll related costs through a combination of temporary furloughs, permanent layoffs and salary reductions. In total, the Company’s headcount has been reduced by over 30% as compared to head...