Lions Gate revenue jumps before expected 'La La Land' windfall

Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. revenue jumped in its fiscal third quarter after the acquisition of Starz, but the blockbuster performance of Oscars favorite "La La Land" is still to come. The film and television company reported a net loss of $31 million, or 19 cents a share, on sales of $752 million, a sales gain of 12% from the year before. After adjustments for restructuring charges and other effects, Lions Gate reported a profit of 21 cents a share. Analysts on average expected Lions Gate to report adjusted profit of 25 cents a share on revenue of $769 million. The quarterly performance reflected less than a month's worth of performance from Starz, since the $4.4 billion deal closed in December, and did not include the musical "La La Land," which was released widely just after the new year and has brought in nearly $300 million worldwide and a record-tying 14 Academy Award nominations. Lions Gate's biggest movie releases of the quarter were "Tyler Perry's Boo! A Madea Halloween" and "Hacksaw Ridge," the company said. Shares were initially steady in late trading after closing with a 1.2% decline at $27.70.

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