Sphere Entertainment - Earnings Call - Q2 2025

Executive Summary

• Q2 2025 (three months ended Dec 31, 2024): Revenue $308.3M, Operating loss $(142.9)M, Adjusted Operating Income (AOI) $32.9M; GAAP diluted EPS (continuing ops) $(3.49). Versus S&P Global consensus, revenue beat ($280.2M est.) and normalized EPS substantially outperformed (−$1.415 est. vs +$3.73 actual on S&P’s normalized basis)* (see “Financial Results” and “Estimates Context”).*
• Segment mix: Sphere revenue $169.0M (+1% YoY); MSG Networks revenue $139.3M (−5% YoY). MSG Networks recorded a $61.2M non‑cash goodwill impairment and posted $(35.0)M operating loss; segment AOI $33.7M (−10% YoY).
• Liquidity and capital: Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash $515.6M (Dec 31); total current debt due $829.1M (mostly MSG Networks), long‑term debt $524.0M. Forbearance on MSG Networks’ credit facilities extended to March 26, 2025; ~$804.1M term loan outstanding after $25M Feb 4 repayment. If a refinance/work‑out fails, MSG Networks or subsidiaries may seek bankruptcy protection or lenders may foreclose.
• Operating drivers/catalysts: Eagles residency underway; Anyma electronic run; Formula 1 Las Vegas takeover; strong corporate demand (e.g., Delta CES); sponsorship/Exosphere sales brought in‑house with pricing/packaging refresh; next Sphere Experience slated for 2025, smaller 5,000‑seat Sphere architecture in development; Abu Dhabi project partner‑funded and advancing preconstruction.

What Went Well and What Went Wrong

• What Went Well

  • Sphere’s content and event slate broadened: 190 Sphere Experience/film shows ($86.5M), residencies (Eagles began), corporate and marquee events (F1 takeover; Delta CES), and Afterlife’s Anyma run.
  • Sponsorship/Exosphere trends improved into year‑end and early 2025; sales moved in‑house to rework pricing/packaging and deepen CMO/agency relationships. “We saw solid advertising demand for the Exosphere at the end of 2024, which has continued into the new year”. “We’ve brought our sales efforts back in‑house… we’re going to take a fresh look at our go‑to‑market strategy”.
  • Expansion progressing: Abu Dhabi moving through design/preconstruction (partner fully funding construction); work on smaller 5,000‑seat Sphere concept for broader market deployment.

• What Went Wrong

  • MSG Networks headwinds: −11.5% sub decline drove lower distribution revenue; non‑cash goodwill impairment ($61.2M) pushed segment to operating loss (−$35.0M).
  • Elevated corporate costs: SG&A rose to $119.0M at Sphere segment, including $8.3M executive transition costs and higher professional fees tied to MSG Networks’ credit workout and litigation.
  • Balance sheet overhang at MSG Networks: forbearance extended to Mar 26, 2025; ~$804.1M outstanding after repayment; risk of bankruptcy/foreclosure if no refinancing/work‑out achieved.

Transcript

Speaker 0

Good morning and thank you for standing by. Welcome to the Sphere Entertainment Co.'s second quarter 2025 earnings conference call. At this time, all participants are in a listen-only mode. After the speaker's remarks, there will be a question and answer session. I would now like to turn the call over to Ari Danes, Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

Speaker 2

Thank you. Good morning and welcome to Sphere Entertainment Co.'s second quarter 2025 earnings conference call. Today's call will begin with our Executive Chairman and CEO, James Dolan, who will provide an update on the business. Robert Langer, our Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer, and Treasurer, will then review our financial results for the period. After our prepared remarks, we will open up the call for questions. If you do not have a copy of today's earnings release, it is available in the Investors section of our corporate website. Please take note of the following. Today's discussion may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance or results and involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements.

Please refer to the company's filings with the SEC for a discussion of risks and uncertainties. The company disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements that may be discussed during this call. On pages 5 and 6 of today's earnings release, we provide consolidated statements of operations and a reconciliation of operating income to adjusted operating income, or AOI, a non-GAAP financial measure. With that, I'll now turn the call over to James.

Speaker 6

Thank you, Ari, and good morning, everyone. As we said from the start, our goal was to design and operate a venue that's busy 365 days a year with multiple events on most days. While we started in Las Vegas, our strategy has always included a global network of Sphere venues. This year, our priorities have been to continue enhancing our operating model in Las Vegas, drive long-term profitability for the business, and advance our plans to bring Sphere to Abu Dhabi and additional markets around the world. Our original content category, the Sphere Experience, has been one of the key profit drivers of the business, and we remain focused on developing a diverse slate. Our next experience, The Wizard of Oz at Sphere, will be the best example to date of experiential content in this new media.

We will be utilizing innovative technologies like AI, and that innovation will continue with the production of our next Sphere Experience, From the Edge, which we expect to debut in 2026. In terms of early demand for The Wizard of Oz at Sphere, we have sold over 120,000 tickets to date and expect to reach 200,000 by the opening later this month. We're also seeing increasing demand from artists across a variety of genres, which are driving renewed interest in their music by playing Sphere in Las Vegas. We have continued to add shows to our calendar and now expect to host more than 100 concerts this year, up from 70 in 2024. We are also making progress building a recurring revenue base.

In terms of corporate events, this past June, Hewlett Packard held a keynote at Sphere for the second consecutive year, and we're now in discussion with a number of companies that have held events at Sphere and are looking to return. We are also expanding our roster of advertisers on the Exosphere. This includes securing advertising commitments as part of a new multi-year sponsorship. With regards to our expansion plans, we recently entered into agreements related to the construction, development, and operation of Sphere Abu Dhabi and are now finalizing the pre-construction phase with the Department of Culture and Tourism. At the same time, discussions are ongoing with a number of other international markets regarding large-scale Spheres.

In addition, we have now completed our design and business model for small-scale Spheres, which can be built faster and at lower costs, and are already in the market having discussions with potential partners. I will now turn the call over to Robert, who will take you through our financial results and MSG Networks debt restructuring.

Speaker 7

Thank you, Jim, and good morning, everyone. For the June quarter, we generated total company revenues of $282.7 million and adjusted operating income of $61.5 million. Our Sphere segment generated revenues of $175.6 million as compared to $151.2 million in the prior year period. This growth was mainly driven by an increase in event-related revenues, with additional corporate events and nine additional residency shows held in the current year quarter, partially offset by the absence of a marquee sporting event. It also reflects the impact of revenues related to bringing the world's second Sphere to Abu Dhabi. These revenue increases were offset by lower revenues from the Sphere Experience, which was primarily due to lower average virtual revenues offset by an increase in the number of total performances. Adjusted operating income for our Sphere segment was $24.9 million and increased to $30.4 million year over year.

This reflected the increase in revenues as well as lower SG&A expenses, partially offset by higher direct operating expenses. The increase in direct operating expenses includes higher event-related expenses and higher expenses associated with the Sphere Experience, both driven by an increase in the number of events year over year. SG&A expenses for the June quarter were $96.4 million, a decrease of $5.7 million year over year. This includes the impact of the company's focus on driving cost efficiencies this year. As Jim discussed, we are making progress on executing on our core priorities to drive profitable growth at our Sphere segment. While we are still a nascent business where results can fluctuate quarter to quarter, we remain pleased with our overall trajectory and continue to see significant long-term growth potential at Sphere.

Turning to MSG Networks, the segment generated $107.1 million in revenues and $36.5 million in AOI in the June quarter. This compares to $122.2 million in revenues and $31.1 million in AOI in the prior year period. The decrease in revenues stems from lower distribution revenue, driven by an approximately 13% decrease in subscribers, partially offset by the impact of higher affiliation rates. The increase in AOI reflects lower direct operating expenses, partially offset by the decrease in revenues and higher SG&A expenses. On June 27, MSG Networks completed a restructuring of its credit facilities. In connection with that restructuring, MSG Networks also completed amendments to its media rights agreements with MSG Sports and certain other professional sports teams. Direct operating expenses include the impact of reduction in media rights fees as a result of these amendments, including retroactive adjustments for the 2024-2025 season recorded in this second quarter.

Turning to our balance sheet under MSG Networks debt restructuring in June, its prior $804 million term loan was replaced with a new $210 million term loan facility, which will mature in December 2029. This debt remains non-recourse to the parent company. Upon closing, MSG Networks also made a cash payment of $80 million to the lenders, which was comprised of $65 million from MSG Networks and a $15 million capital contribution from the company. After MSG Networks debt restructuring, our net debt at the end of the quarter was down to approximately $388 million, which reflects $356 million of unrestricted cash and $744 million in principal debt outstanding. In addition to MSG Networks' new term loan, our debt balance at quarter end included $259 million in convertible debt and a $275 million credit facility related to Sphere in Las Vegas. With that, we'll now open the call for questions.

Speaker 0

At this time, if you would like to ask a question, press star, then the number one on your telephone keypad. If you would like to withdraw your question, press star one again. We'll pause for just a moment to compile the Q&A roster. Your first question comes from Brandon Ross with LightShed Partners.

Speaker 4

Hey guys, thanks for taking the questions. Jim, you finished your prepared remarks by saying you'd completed your plans for the smaller Spheres. I was hoping you could tell us more about them. Anything you want to share, including the business model, the cost, potential market, and thoughts on who might be the right partners for that?

Speaker 6

Okay, it's an elongated question. The smaller spheres, the important thing was the design, right? At least I thought it was. The design of these spheres is quite similar to our large Sphere in Las Vegas with a couple of improvements. The business model is quite similar, right? Which is to keep the venue busy, you know, 365 days a year. All the content that's created for Sphere in Las Vegas and eventually Abu Dhabi will also play in any of these small spheres. We've completed the design of it. We've also completed the business model. The business model is designed along a franchise kind of approach. We are out in the marketplace now, beginning to expose potential investors to the business model and looking at different locations for small spheres. These spheres will be less expensive, much less expensive than Las Vegas was. They'll also be faster.

I mean, they can get built faster. My hope would be that we could build a small sphere in a little over two years from when we break ground. We're starting. It all does follow the same model. The content, which is created out of Sphere Studios, will be, as I said, playable in all spheres. At some point, as we build these, you will see Postcard from Earth. You will see The Wizard of Oz at Sphere. You will see From the Edge and other products that we create for large spheres will play in the small spheres too.

Speaker 4

Okay, and just to clarify, you said that they would be on the franchise model. That means capital-light? Are you guys going to contribute capital to the mini Spheres?

Speaker 6

Yeah, we think capital-light, you know, I won't completely eliminate the notion that we'll have some, you know, stub investment, etc., in order to help it. Our strategy really is to get this thing moving and to open a lot of them. No, we won't be investing, and we shouldn't. We've proven out the model with Vegas. We'll prove it out again in the other ones and it should become easy to invest in because you'll have a pretty solid path going forward.

Speaker 4

Thanks for taking the question.

Speaker 6

Sure.

Speaker 0

Your next question comes from David Karnovsky with JPMorgan.

Speaker 3

Hey, thank you. Jim, you noted tickets sold to date for The Wizard of Oz at Sphere, but can you help provide some context around that? Maybe how the pre-sales compared to Postcard from Earth and maybe stepping back, what just kind of underlies your confidence generally about transitioning the audiences to the new content?

Speaker 6

Sure. Look, up until this point, we've sold about, actually today, I think we're at 127,000. We're entering that period that we're quite familiar with from the Christmas Spectacular show, which is that in the three weeks prior to the event, right, better than 50% of the tickets get sold. If you apply the same ratios to The Wizard of Oz at Sphere, we should start to actually see ticket sales ramp up from here. That's how our marketing is set up, etc. We've got to open the show. Like a little bit like Postcard from Earth, nobody quite knows what they're going to see until we open it. We're very proud of the product. We think it's groundbreaking. We think that it's going to draw a lot of attention and that people who come to Las Vegas are going to want to go.

Right now, the Sphere sees 7% of the total visitors to Las Vegas see the Sphere. I think that we should look to get well over 10% with The Wizard of Oz at Sphere, and that just turns into more success for the product.

Speaker 3

once The Wizard of Oz at Sphere is live, I'm just curious how you're thinking about the library content. You referenced it a little bit before in the context of smaller Spheres, but how would you think about the amount of Sphere Experience or Postcard from Earth shows from here?

Speaker 6

Say again, please.

Speaker 3

Just wondering how you're thinking about utilizing your existing shows too, and Postcard from Earth.

Speaker 6

Sure. Okay. All of the shows that we've created so far are created with the notion of them being evergreen. It would not surprise me if 10 years from now in Abu Dhabi you go and you could see a showing of Postcard from Earth. That's entirely, that's actually quite likely, as really we're the only ones who are creating experiential immersive content like we are. I think those products will get used again and again as long as they're not dated. They're not. As we get better at them, we will have more of a slate for each one of the Spheres. Likely, you'll see certain days in the small Sphere, like Friday is The Wizard of Oz at Sphere day, Saturday is From the Edge day, and interspersed with corporates and probably some concerts.

Speaker 3

Thank you.

Speaker 0

Your next question comes from Stephen Laszczyk with Goldman Sachs.

Speaker 5

Good morning. This is Antares on for Stephen. Thanks for taking the questions. A couple on concert residencies. First, as you're looking into 2026, you've had some good diversification this year of the genre types that we've seen with Backstreet and Zac Brown. Do you expect more new genres to come next year? Maybe longer term, if you could touch on what the upper limit might be for these residencies, you mentioned over 100 this year. Just wondering what that might look like over the next year or two. Thank you.

Speaker 6

There are some key things to that. The probably most important to us is that the way the residencies are constructed, the way the performances are constructed, that we're able to run things like The Wizard of Oz at Sphere two or three times during the day and then shift into the concert in the evening and variations off of that theme. As long as we can do that, we can keep on taking, you know, more concerts. You should understand the way the business was designed was to create contention between the different acts that appear at the Sphere, between, you know, The Wizard of Oz at Sphere and the Backstreet Boys and the Eagles and even corporates, etc. They're all vying for days, right, and screen time. We will most likely, you know, decide that based on what gets us the best grosses.

The Wizard of Oz at Sphere is going to be interesting to watch because, you know, it could very well be that The Wizard of Oz at Sphere is doing so well that it nudges out one or two concerts. The aura corporate, because, you know, I wouldn't rent the venue to somebody for $1.5 million or $2 million if I could do $4 million with the product that I already have and is already paid for. That's the contention. That was, you know, by design. I will say that the big name concerts, right, do bring in, you know, people who haven't been to the Sphere before or are interested in the act. There's, you know, a little bit of lost leader thinking on that, although I wouldn't call it a loss, but maybe a less leader thing on it. That's what we manage. That's what Jen manages.

Speaker 5

Great. Thank you.

Speaker 0

Our next question comes from Peter Supino with Wolfe Research.

Speaker 1

Hi, good morning. I'll try to work through three questions with you, if you don't mind. The first is whether you foresee future Sphere Experiences being based on owned IP, or should we look at The Wizard of Oz at Sphere as a template? Will you possibly, or do you intend to have many movies that are recreated for the Sphere?

Speaker 6

That's a very good question because I'm not sure what the answer is yet. I know what's on the slate for the next year. For one thing, The Wizard of Oz at Sphere was not an inexpensive project. On top of which, we think it's going to have a high demand. How long do I run The Wizard of Oz at Sphere, right? Ultimately, we'll run The Wizard of Oz at Sphere forever. Who gets the screen time, right? Follow-up on The Wizard of Oz at Sphere is a feature called From the Edge, which is very, very different than The Wizard of Oz at Sphere. It has little or no AI in it, right? It utilizes heavily live capture, which will create even more of an experience inside of the Sphere itself. What comes after that?

We're actually talking to several different IP holders and coming up with some of our own IP. I don't think we're really very stuck on who owns the IP. It's more the question of what the cost of the IP is, right? The Wizard of Oz at Sphere model is pretty good. We like our deal with Warner Bros. We think it's one of the interesting things about it. Pretty much everybody who has come to the Sphere, like all of the acts and now I think even The Wizard of Oz at Sphere, you find a renewed public interest in the IP. There's a benefit to the IP holder to licensing to the Sphere because they see other revenue streams increase, etc. For instance, like the Backstreet Boys appearing at Sphere and then their record sales going up and their bookings going up, etc.

Grateful Dead, others, the same kind of thing. I think we're basically somewhat indifferent to who owns the IP. What we're more focused on is that we've put together a great show.

Speaker 1

Following up on that subject of content, actually, first a digression. I have a Jimmy Chin coffee table book in my house, and I think you could sell some of those in the lobby of the Sphere after the movie. The question is, has AI made the production of The Wizard of Oz at Sphere easier and how much cheaper and efficiently do you think you can recreate films in the future?

Speaker 6

First up, without AI, I don't think we would have done The Wizard of Oz at Sphere. We couldn't have gotten it to the resolutions, we couldn't have gotten it to the immersion levels, etc., that we did without Google and their AI. In doing that, we broke a lot of new ground in AI. I do think that the technology is going to be used again and again. I don't know that it will always be by us. I rather doubt it, although we do have first dibs for a while. The question is, what's the IP, right? I mean, is it, you know, is it Gone with the Wind, right? Does that have enough appeal to bring in the kind of audiences? It's hard for me to imagine a better product than The Wizard of Oz at Sphere right now, but you never know.

We are in active discussions with lots of IP holders who are interested in seeing their IP turned into this. I will say that the AI for The Wizard of Oz at Sphere was difficult. Difficult for everybody involved, right? Because we did a lot of things for the first time, outpainting resolutions, all the things that go along with using the AI, were all done for the first time. They should definitely be a lot easier the second time. I don't have any specific plans to tell you about with that.

Speaker 1

All right, thanks. My last question relates to the price of a ticket to The Wizard of Oz at Sphere. It's a lot higher than a ticket to Postcard from Earth when that went on sale. Could you unpack what gave you the confidence to take prices up?

Speaker 6

I think we're still, either at or below the average ticket in Las Vegas for the major shows like O and The Stair, etc. I think initially with Postcard from Earth, we wanted to make entry really easy, just to get people familiar with the product, to get it being talked about, etc. I think the product has proven itself. I think it's certainly worth the ticket price, and that's why we went forward with the pricing.

Speaker 0

Your next question comes from Peter Henderson with Bank of America Merrill Lynch.

Speaker 1

Yes, good morning and thank you for taking the questions. I want to start with one on Sphere and then have a follow-up on MSGN. I just want to touch upon your opening comments around international expansion. Can you provide any additional color on those conversations and whether or not they're in sort of early or advanced stages? I believe that you mentioned for the international expansion that you're focused on full-size Spheres, and I just want to confirm that.

Speaker 6

They will do both. I don't think we're particularly, you know, it has to match the market size, right? The market is judged by what the population is in the market to start off with, and then things like tourism, etc. You don't want to build a smaller facility that will get overrun. You don't want to build a bigger facility that will get underused. You kind of got to match it up. As far as the individual markets, we are in discussions with a bunch of different marketplaces. I don't really have a lot more color to add to you today. Maybe at the next quarter's review, we'll have something more to say.

Speaker 1

Thank you. On MSG Networks, just wondering, with the restructuring now complete, do you have any updated thoughts on the possibility for a strategic transaction there?

Speaker 6

I think that we're considering it, looking at it, trying to figure out the marketplace. I will say that I think we're big believers in a consolidated marketplace with sports. In other words, one place for you to go to see all of your teams in your marketplace. That product has a lot of power with the consumer, right? We have between us and the Yes Network, we have most of the teams, right? I wouldn't mind getting the rest. It's really only one. In terms of what a transaction like that would look like and what the ownership structures would look like, we don't have enough meat on the bone yet to say.

Speaker 1

Thank you. Operator, we have time for one last caller.

Speaker 0

Your final question comes from David Joyce with Seaport Research Partners.

Speaker 1

Thank you. A couple, please. Can you please update us on the sponsorship and advertising trajectory? Any thoughts on the forward demand and the progress on the Exosphere? Granted, it was down 3% in the quarter. What were the puts and takes on that? Maybe you could tie that into a second question on, you know, in the Las Vegas overall market visitation being down. What are you seeing in terms of the impacts on that for the September quarter? Thank you.

Speaker 6

I think I'm going to give both of those to Jennifer.

Speaker 5

Okay. Let me take your first one, the forward demand on Exosphere and sponsorship. We are continuing to make progress on our evolving go-to-market approach and establishing this recurring book of business when we think about sponsors and advertisers on the Exosphere. We've seen some early successes with our new packages, including 60-second spots that give our advertisers even more exposure. We've also been rolling out some more comprehensive in-venue packages that include IPTVs and atrium surfaces. This is complementary to our Exosphere advertising and gives even more value to our partners. During this quarter, we also secured a deal with a media agency to drive upfront ad buys. That is directly going against the priority to build more recurring revenue base. To that point as well, we've expanded our roster of ad sponsors and have announced several multi-year sponsorship agreements.

I think we're making progress here and we continue to see significant demand and growth in that area of the business.

Speaker 6

I will say that if you remember, we changed our representation at the beginning of this year. It almost felt like we were starting from ground zero in some way. We have not fully adapted that group, although we're well on our way to doing it. I think building a sales force, having been a salesman for a long time, is not an easy thing to do. Getting it rolling again, etc. I think we're making really good progress.

Speaker 5

Your second question on impacts of Las Vegas visitation. We're mindful of the Vegas visitation trends, but as James Dolan said before, we are focused on positioning the business for long-term growth. A lot of the priorities that we've been focused on the past two quarters, building original experience slates, diversifying artists in the venue, and establishing the recurring book of business, is really where our focus is. As a nascent business, you're going to see fluctuations quarter to quarter, and that's going to vary based on a number of factors, whether in market or not. That being said, we remain pleased with the overall trajectory of the business, and we're going to continue to see significant long-term growth.

Speaker 1

All right, thank you very much.

Speaker 0

That concludes our Q&A session. I'll now turn the conference back over to Ari Danes for closing remarks.

Speaker 3

Thank you all for joining us. We look forward to speaking with you on our next earnings call. Have a good day.

Speaker 0

This concludes today's conference call. You may now disconnect.