Live Nation Q1 Results: Continued Momentum From Return Of Live Events, Tour Sponsorship

Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. has released financial results for the quarter ended March 31, 2022.

Live Nation continues to see the momentum of the return of live events from the previous quarter, delivering operating income of $27 million and AOI of $209 million. Ticketmaster’s strong first quarter performance drove the company’s overall profitability, showing that concert and sponsorship businesses are positioned to deliver record results this year. The company also has over 70 million tickets sold for shows in 2022, up 36% compared to this point in 2019, with committed show count up 44% through late April relative to 2019.

Sponsorship activity also fully returned in Q1, delivering financial results that well exceeded Q1 2019 and growth in expansion of existing relationships, new categories expanding their breadth of partners and new ad units being created both on-site and online.

“Looking ahead to the summer and the rest of the year, we remain optimistic that we are just getting going as all leading indicators reinforce record activity levels and financial results,” notes Michael Rapino, President and Chief Executive Officer. “Ticketing sales were at a record level in Q1, with momentum building over February and March. We have sold almost 20 million more tickets to our concerts this year than at this point in 2019, with a large number of tours still to go on-sale. Concert fans are showing no signs of slowing down–they are paying more for the best tickets, attending the shows, and spending more onsite as they create lifetime memories.”

He continues, “I continue to expect this to be the start of our run. The global addressable market for concerts, ticketing and sponsorship all provide a long runway for continued growth. We have over 60 tours already under discussion for 2023–our earliest indicator of next year, and great positioning for ongoing growth.”

Highlights:
Operating Income of $27 Million and AOI of $209 Million
Ticketmaster Delivers Another Record Quarter – Operating Income Up 3x, AOI Up 2x, Transacted GTV Up 39% (vs Q1 2019)
Ticketmaster Growing Client Base – 7 Million Net New Tickets Added
Sponsorship Operating Income Up 83% and AOI Up 75% (vs Q1 2019)
OCESA Financial Performance At 2019 Levels

2022 Outlook:
70 Million Tickets Sold for 2022 Concerts, On Track for Double-Digit Fan Growth This Year (vs 2019)
Concert Bookings Up 44% Through Late April (vs 2019)
$3.5 Billion in Event Related Deferred Revenue, Up Nearly 2x (vs Q1 2019)
Fan Demand for Best Seats Drives Concert Ticket Pricing Up Double-Digits (vs 2019), While Entry Level Tickets Average Under $35
Fan Base at Operated Venues Growing – 20 New Venues in 2022 Pipeline, 38 New Festivals
Over 90% of Planned Sponsorship Net Revenue for 2022 Committed

Read the full financial report here.