Marcus (NYSE:MCS) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results

Marcus (NYSE:MCS) announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The company reported ($0.06) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.07 by ($0.13), Zacks reports. Marcus had a net margin of 1.02% and a return on equity of 1.71%. The business had revenue of $193.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $185.19 million.

Here are the key takeaways from Marcus’ conference call:

• Consolidated Q4 revenue was $193.5M (+2.8%) with Adjusted EBITDA of $26.8M (+3.6%), but operating income was reduced by a $5.2M non‑cash theater impairment and full‑year Adjusted EBITDA declined 3.1% to $99.3M; an ~$7.6M historic tax credit boosted EPS but is excluded from Adjusted EBITDA.
• Theatres outperformed the U.S. box office by ~7.6 percentage points in Q4, driven by a favorable family film mix, a 12.7% increase in average ticket price and +7.2% concession per‑cap growth, while rollout of digital and point‑of‑sale initiatives (new queuing, QR ordering, revamped app/site) targets further per‑cap gains.
• Hotels delivered a record revenue and Adjusted EBITDA year — Q4 RevPAR rose 3.5% and ADR grew 5.6% as renovated properties captured higher leisure demand and outperformed competitive sets by ~2.7–5.5 percentage points.
• Balance sheet and capital allocation are conservative with >$230M liquidity, 26% debt‑to‑capital and 1.5x net leverage; management expects 2026 capex to step down to $50–55M, boosting free cash flow for opportunistic M&A and continued dividends/share repurchases.

Marcus Price Performance

MCS traded up $0.44 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $16.86. The company had a trading volume of 228,195 shares, compared to its average volume of 157,326. Marcus has a twelve month low of $12.85 and a twelve month high of $18.80. The company has a market capitalization of $517.74 million, a PE ratio of 70.25, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a current ratio of 0.35. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $15.59 and its 200-day simple moving average is $15.26.

Marcus Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 25th. Marcus’s dividend payout ratio is presently 133.33%.

Key Headlines Impacting Marcus

Here are the key news stories impacting Marcus this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Revenue beat and box-office momentum — Marcus reported Q4 revenue above Street estimates and said Marcus Theatres led the industry in box office growth driven by price-optimization and a favorable film slate, supporting near-term top-line momentum. Marcus Corp (MCS) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Highlights
• Positive Sentiment: Hotels division strength — Management said Marcus Hotels & Resorts delivered strong Q4 results and capped a record year for the division, which helps diversify revenue and cash generation beyond theatres. Marcus Corporation Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year Fiscal 2025 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Disciplined 2026 capex plan — The company outlined a $50M–$55M capex plan for 2026 focused on strategic investments and maximizing free cash flow, which signals capital discipline and may reassure income-focused investors. Marcus Corporation outlines $50M–$55M capital spending plan for 2026
• Neutral Sentiment: Full earnings call available — Management commentary and transcript provide more color on pricing, film mix, and cost trends; useful for investors digging into guidance and margin drivers. Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: EPS miss and weak profitability — The company reported a loss of $0.06/sh vs. a consensus $0.07 expectation and EPS declined vs. prior year; net margin (≈1.0%) and ROE remain low, which could temper enthusiasm despite revenue strength. Marcus Q4 results and press release

Institutional Trading of Marcus

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd lifted its holdings in Marcus by 7.9% during the 4th quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd now owns 1,915,765 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,714,000 after buying an additional 141,064 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Marcus by 11.1% in the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 392,634 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,553,000 after buying an additional 39,118 shares during the period. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Marcus by 4.2% during the third quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 363,248 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,634,000 after acquiring an additional 14,553 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its stake in shares of Marcus by 55.2% during the third quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 340,486 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,281,000 after acquiring an additional 121,035 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Marcus by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 307,970 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,777,000 after acquiring an additional 15,388 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.57% of the company’s stock.

Marcus announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Friday, October 31st that authorizes the company to buyback 4,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on MCS. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Marcus in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Barrington Research lowered their price objective on Marcus from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Marcus from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Marcus has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $23.50.

About Marcus

The Marcus Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, owns and operates movie theatres, and hotels and resorts in the United States. It operates a family entertainment center and multiscreen motion picture theatres under the Big Screen Bistro, Big Screen Bistro Express, BistroPlex, and Movie Tavern by Marcus brand names. The company also owns and operates full-service hotels and resorts, as well as manages full-service hotels, resorts, and other properties. In addition, it provides hospitality management services, including check-in, housekeeping, and maintenance for a vacation ownership development; and manages condominium hotels under long-term management contracts.