Cinemark 3Q profit up 2.8 percent

Cinemark 3Q profit up 2.8 percent, helped by South American moviegoers

• On 3:41 pm EST, Monday November 9, 2009

PLANO, Texas (AP) -- Movie-theater operator Cinemark Holdings Inc. said Monday its third-quarter profit rose 2.8 percent as its international movie theaters outdid its domestic ones.

Cinemark earned $21 million, or 19 cents per share, in the quarter ended Sept. 30. That was up from $20.4 million, also 19 cents per share on fewer outstanding shares, in the same period a year ago.

Revenue rose 4.3 percent to $496.8 million from $476.2 million.

Both profit and revenue surpassed the average forecast of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters. They were expecting earnings of 16 cents per share on $478.5 million in revenue.

Attendance rose 4.5 percent from a year ago.

"Our growth outpaced the domestic industry box office for the fourth consecutive quarter," said CEO Alan Stock, in a statement. "South American countries continue to outpace the U.S. economic recovery and we continue to benefit from solid industry trends and the expansion of our international portfolio."

He said the fourth quarter was "off to a good start, as patrons continue to enjoy the cinema as an exciting, low cost form of entertainment."

Cinemark shares rose 60 cents, or 5.1 percent, to $12.33 in afternoon trading.

Analyst Jeffrey Logsdon at BMO Capital Markets raised his 2010 earnings estimate for Cinemark 1 cent, to 81 cents per share, after the report. He noted that the company could face some difficult comparisons next year to the previous year's performance, but that a strong dividend and the opportunities available in upgrading theaters to digital projection can make the stock attractive to value investors. He rates the company "Market Perform" with a $15 price target.

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