A RECORD Q3 FOR LIVE NATION: $8.2B

Live Nation has posted a record-breaking third quarter, with revenue up 32% to $8.2b, putting the concert-promotion giant on a path to a record-setting year.

Revenue was up 32% to $7b in the concerts division. Ticket revenue rose 57% to $833m. And operating income was up 22% to $619m in Q3 and is up 35% to $1.1b year to date.

“Today we delivered our strongest quarter ever and are on pace for a record 2023, driven in good part by the acceleration of structural growth in the live entertainment industry,” said Live Nation President and CEO Michael Rapino. “While we have benefited from tailwinds for many years, that has accelerated due to the globalization of our business along with a fundamental shift in consumer spending habits toward experiences. With the majority of opportunity still untapped from Milan to Bogotá to Tokyo and beyond, we expect the industry will continue growing in 2024 and for years to come.”

Live Nation staged 9,080 events in North America and another 3,010 internationally. Nearly 52.3m people attended LN events in the quarter.

The promoter expects to see 55m attendees at the venues it operates in 2023, up double digits from 49m in 2022. And once people are in the building, they’re spending more; ancillary revenue per fan at amphitheaters has topped $40, a 10% improvement.

The outlook for Q4 and 2024 is also extremely rosy, with 140m tickets sold year to date, up 17% year over year. Ticketmaster has sold 257m fee-bearing tickets to date, a 22% spike over 2022.

Looking at next year, event-related deferred revenue is up 39% to $2.6b and about half the shows booked are for large venues, a double-digit increase.

Now, if you'll excuse us, they're doing unusually generous pours at the stadium beer garden.