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Overall the call conveyed a positive tone: strong operational performance in theaters with meaningful revenue and adjusted-EBITDA gains on a comparable basis, notable RevPAR and occupancy outperformance in hotels despite ADR pressure, substantial free-cash-flow improvement driven by lower CapEx, and a healthy balance sheet. The primary negatives were a continued operating loss, a decline in hotels adjusted EBITDA and some hotel F&B/other revenue softness, as well as an accounting/calendar headwind of 5 fewer operating days. On balance, the positive operational momentum and liquidity improvements outweigh the headwinds described.
Management reiterated 2026 capital spending guidance of $50–$55 million (about a $30 million planned reduction), noting Q1 capex of $6.6M (down $16.4M YoY) and saying the lower CapEx should produce a meaningful uplift in free cash flow — Q1 free cash flow improved by $36.5M YoY — while cash flow from operations was a use of $15.2M (vs. $35.3M a year ago). The company finished the quarter with >$11M cash and >$194M total liquidity, a debt‑to‑capital ratio of 28% and net leverage of 1.7x, repurchased ~87,000 shares for $1.3M in Q1, and reiterated a balanced capital allocation strategy (quarterly dividend, opportunistic buybacks and M&A optionality) while saying it will update capex expectations as the year progresses.
Consolidated revenues of $154.4M increased $5.6M or 3.8% year-over-year as reported; excluding the 5 fewer operating days in the prior-year period, comparable calendar-quarter revenue rose $20.9M or 15.6%.
Consolidated adjusted EBITDA was $2.6M, up $2.9M year-over-year. On a comparable calendar-quarter basis (excluding the 5 fewer prior-year days), adjusted EBITDA increased by $8.2M.
Theater revenue was $92.9M, up $5.6M or 6.4% year-over-year; on a comparable basis revenues rose $17.8M or 23.6%. Comparable admission revenue increased 29% and comparable attendance increased 19.1% on a calendar-quarter basis. Company theaters outperformed the U.S. box office by ~7.6 percentage points on a straight calendar-quarter basis.
Average admission price increased 7.8% and average concession F&B revenue per person rose 2.4% in the quarter. Theater adjusted EBITDA was $8.0M, up $4.3M year-over-year (comparable-adjusted EBITDA up $9.3M).
Completed rollout of tap-to-pay terminals and nearly completed in-seat QR mobile ordering for dine-in locations; digital upsell and ordering improvements expected to support continued concession per-cap growth (management modeling 2%–3% as a reasonable run rate).
Hotels and resorts revenues were $61.4M (up $0.1M). Comparable owned-hotel RevPAR grew 13.7% driven by an 8.9 percentage-point occupancy increase (average occupancy 59.2%), despite ADR down 3.4%. After adjusting for a prior-year renovation, hotels outperformed competitive sets on RevPAR by ~11.5 percentage points.
Q1 capital expenditures were $6.6M (down $16.4M YoY); company expects 2026 CapEx of $50–$55M and projects a significant increase in free cash flow. Q1 free cash flow improved by $36.5M versus prior year.
Ended the quarter with over $11M in cash, total liquidity of over $194M, debt-to-capitalization of 28% and net leverage of 1.7x. Company repurchased ~87,000 shares for $1.3M in Q1 while maintaining flexibility for investment or opportunistic repurchases.
Management highlighted a significantly improved first-quarter film slate, strong April openings and an encouraging upcoming slate (including multiple family/tentpole titles). Executives also noted industry movement toward longer theatrical windows, which they view as beneficial to theatrical economics.
Good morning, everyone, and welcome to Marcus Corporation's First Quarter Earnings Conference Call. My name is Ellie, and I will be your operator for today. [Operator Instructions] As a reminder, this conference is being recorded. Joining us today are Greg Marcus, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer; and Chad Paris, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of Marcus Corporation. At this time, I'd now like to turn the program over to Mr. Paris for his opening remarks. Please go ahead, sir.
Good morning, and welcome to our 2026 First Quarter Conference Call. I need to begin by stating that we plan to make a number of forward-looking statements on our call today, which may be identified by our use of words such as believe, anticipate, expect or other similar words. Our forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, which may cause our actual results to differ materially from those expected or projected in our forward-looking statements. These statements are only made as of the date of this conference call, and we disclaim any obligation to publicly update such forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances. The risks and uncertainties, which could impact our ability to achieve our expectations identified in our forward-looking statements are included under the heading Forward-Looking Statements in the press release we issued this morning announcing our 2026 first quarter results and in the Risk Factors section of our annual report on Form 10-K, which you can access on the SEC's website. Additionally, we refer you t...