Hotels division boosts Event Cinemas owner EVT
Despite the Hollywood screenwriters strike and a disastrous start to the ski season, EVT revenue rose 4 per cent in the 2024 financial year.
Despite the Hollywood screenwriters strike and a disastrous start to the ski season, EVT revenue rose 4 per cent in the 2024 financial year, boosted by a record year for its hotel division.
The company, which owns Event Cinemas, BCC Cinemas and CineStar, as well as golf courses and a hotel portfolio (which includes the Rydges, QT and Atura brands), reported revenue of $1.2bn for the year ended June 30.
However, earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation came in at $151.3m, down 8.2 per, with the group citing the impact of the Hollywood strike disrupting film supply distribution and the “worst weather” at its Thredbo ski resort for 20 years, which had no natural snowfall in June, and no significant terrain open until the end of July.
EVT chief executive Jane Hastings said that, while it had a slower start to the current financial year, with the hotel division having fewer events such as the Taylor Swift concert tour to boost numbers and a later start to the Thredbo winter season, she expected further normalisation of its operations, especially in cinemas.
“In entertainment, the beginning of the financial year has exceeded expectations globally with the release of Inside Out 2 and Despicable Me 4 bringing families back into cinemas,” she said.
“While the film line-up consistency for [the current year] is still recovering, subject to film appeal, the financial year should be in line with or ahead of the prior year. There are good signs of recovery in the film line-up in the 2026 financial year.”
In the 2024 financial year, the group’s hotel portfolio achieved “record-breaking” revenue per available room across all brands. The company reported hotels revenue of $407.4m, compared to $352.6m the previous year and an EBITDA 16.1 per cent higher.
However, its entertainment division reported fewer patrons, with fewer films released because of the strike. April to June recorded the lowest admissions on record – excluding Covid closures. The division’s revenue was $714.8m for the 2024 fiscal year, while underlying EBITDA was $8.8m, down 21.4 per cent.
Thredbo revenues was $86.2m compared to $106.3m the previous year, and EBITDA was $19.8m, compared to $39.7m in the 2023 year. Ms Hastings said using independent valuations the group’s property portfolio remained about $2.3bn.
“The refocused group property strategy is to own, acquire and develop hotel properties in key city locations that support growth of the group’s hotel brands,” she said.
The company announced a fully franked final dividend of 20c a share. EVT shares closed down 2.6 per cent at $10.74.
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