Taylor Swift Concert Film Shatters Ticket Sales Record
With help from Taylor Swift's dedicated fan base, AMC Entertainment Holdings has achieved an extraordinary success. The theater firm announced on Friday that advance purchases for Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour concert film reached a staggering $26 million in ticket sales on Thursday, surpassing the previous single-day sales record held by 2021's Spider-Man: No Way Home at $16.9 million. Amazingly, Taylor Swift's film broke No Way Home's 24-hour ticket sales record within just three hours of sales.
To accommodate the overwhelming demand, AMC will be adding more showtimes. Starting on October 13, the concert film will play at least four showtimes a day on Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays at every U.S. AMC location.
Wedbush analyst Michael Pachter, who had previously projected opening day sales of less than $10 million, or two to three times that with proper promotion, admitted his error after AMC's announcement.
"I clearly was wrong," he stated.
Pachter predicts that the concert film will likely exceed $250 million in ticket sales. While he doesn't believe the numbers will create a significant impact for AMC, he sees potential in the concept of filming concerts or live-streaming them in theaters.
"There is no reason a sold-out concert series can't supplement in a city with overflow tickets sold in theaters," Pachter commented.
AMC stock experienced a slight decline of 1.8% in Friday morning trading. The company has recently implemented a reverse stock split and converted preferred equity units to common shares to raise funds to pay off debt. However, each stock sale will result in the dilution of existing shareholders' holdings.
AMC: The Retail Shareholder Revolution
AMC has forged a fervent community of retail shareholders who congregate in online forums, united by their passion for the company. This fervor first came to light during the pandemic, when short sellers predicted doom and gloom for AMC. However, to their surprise, buyers flooded in, causing a squeeze on the short sellers. Looking back over the past 12 months, the stock has seen highs of $107.50 and lows of $10.72, with an astonishing surge beyond $500 in June 2021. While some traditional Wall Street investors may be wary of an upcoming wave of stock sales, the retail crowd is reveling in the potential opportunities this provides for the company.
Analyzing the situation, Alicia Reese and her colleague Pachter at Wedbush upgraded AMC stock to a Neutral rating, setting a price target of $19 per share on Aug. 24. In their assessment, they emphasized that AMC is well-positioned to take advantage of an improving industry backdrop. Although moviegoers have become more discerning in their content choices, they are also increasingly drawn to premium screens and a wider selection of high-margin concessions.
In addition to its financial triumphs, AMC is currently basking in the overwhelming success of its Eras Tour, which is projected to become the highest-grossing tour in concert history. Even though tourism recovery may be slowing down, May proved to be a standout month for hotel revenue in Philadelphia, driven largely by an influx of Taylor Swift fans attending her concerts.
This serves as a powerful reminder that betting against Taylor Swift and her devoted fan base is an ill-fated endeavor.
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