Imax posts higher profit, expects more theatres next year

Imax Corp. said Thursday it expects to pick up the pace of new theatre installations next year as it reported a profit of $15-million (U.S.) in its latest quarter, up from $8.4-million a year ago.

The big screen movie company said it expects 110 to 125 new theatre installations in 2013 compared with its guidance of 110 for this year.

"We believe Imax has become a story of growth and operating leverage, and our pipeline for future theatre deals remains robust," Imax chief executive Richard Gelfond said in a statement.

"Our view is that we have reached a point of critical mass where our portfolio approach to our film slate combined with our global network expansion is driving scalability in the business."

Imax said its profit for the latest quarter amounted to 22 cents per diluted share, up from 12 cents per diluted share a year ago.

Revenue totalled $80.7-million, up from $67.5-million.

In the third quarter, the company said it signed contracts for 41 theatres, of which 32 were new systems, and installed 33 theatres, of which 28 were new systems and five were digital upgrades.

As of Sept. 30, there were 689 Imax theatres in 52 countries.