Sphere Entertainment Co. (SPHR)
🔔 Watch stock
Everyone has seen the glowing orb of Las Vegas — and that is exactly the problem. Sphere Entertainment ranks no. 6 in the U.S. selection of our in-house Big Earnings Surprise scanner (as of July 18, 2026): four earnings beats in a row, two consecutive quarters of operating profit, revenue up 38 percent in the first quarter of 2026 — "The Wizard of Oz" fills the orb day after day. We read the annual report (10-K) for 2025 and the quarterly report (10-Q) as of March 31, 2026: they also contain five loss periods in a row, a TV network whose crown-jewel media rights expire in 2029, an $829 million loan that matured unpaid in 2024 — and the sentence that the significant operating losses are expected to continue. Not investment advice — just a reminder that the world's most spectacular building does not guarantee a spectacular business.
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Basics
Performance
Valuation
Profitability
Balance Sheet & Safety
Growth
Quality & Screener
AI Rating
Uses AISphere Entertainment nutzt KI operativ in der Content-Produktion: „The Wizard of Oz at Sphere“ (Premiere 28.08.2025, Entwicklungskosten laut 10-K über 100 Mio. US-Dollar) ist die erste immersive Originalproduktion des Konzerns mit KI-Einsatz; ein eigener Risk Factor behandelt Rechts- und IP-Risiken des kundenseitigen KI-Einsatzes. KI ist keine eigenständige Umsatzquelle (verkauft wird das Show-Erlebnis, nicht KI). Negativ-Befund übrige Pflicht-Filings: In den vier letzten 10-Qs und im 10-K für das Geschäftsjahr 2024 (per 30.06.2024) keine KI-Treffer.
View the full file — quotes, sources, reviewed filings
„The experience uses technologies, including artificial intelligence and visual effects, to bring The Wizard of Oz to Sphere’s 160,000 square foot interior display plane and takes advantage of Sphere Immersive Sound’s 167,000 programmable speakers to direct sound around the venue."
Das Erlebnis nutzt Technologien, darunter Künstliche Intelligenz und visuelle Effekte, um The Wizard of Oz auf Spheres 160.000 Quadratfuß große Innen-Displayfläche zu bringen, und macht sich die 167.000 programmierbaren Lautsprecher von Sphere Immersive Sound zunutze, um den Klang durch die Halle zu lenken.
„We invested approximately $80 million to develop the first original immersive production, Postcard from Earth, and over $100 million to develop The Wizard of Oz at Sphere (which was our first original immersive production to use artificial intelligence), and there can be no assurances as to the cost of future immersive productions, which we expect to be significant."
Wir haben rund 80 Millionen US-Dollar in die Entwicklung der ersten immersiven Originalproduktion, Postcard from Earth, investiert und über 100 Millionen US-Dollar in die Entwicklung von The Wizard of Oz at Sphere (unserer ersten immersiven Originalproduktion, die Künstliche Intelligenz einsetzt), und es gibt keine Zusicherungen hinsichtlich der Kosten künftiger immersiver Produktionen, die wir als erheblich erwarten.
„Our use of customer-facing artificial intelligence (“AI”) technologies may expose us to legal, regulatory, intellectual property, and reputational risks, including the risk that AI outputs or the underlying AI tools infringe or are alleged to infringe third-party intellectual property rights, which could result in customer claims, regulatory scrutiny, litigation, or harm to our business and results of operations."
Unser Einsatz kundenseitiger Technologien Künstlicher Intelligenz („KI“) kann uns rechtlichen, regulatorischen, das geistige Eigentum betreffenden und Reputationsrisiken aussetzen — einschließlich des Risikos, dass KI-Ergebnisse oder die zugrunde liegenden KI-Werkzeuge Rechte Dritter am geistigen Eigentum verletzen oder eine solche Verletzung behauptet wird, was zu Kundenansprüchen, aufsichtsrechtlicher Prüfung, Rechtsstreitigkeiten oder Schäden für unser Geschäft und unsere Ertragslage führen könnte.
Filings Reviewed: 10-Q 2026-05-05 · 10-Q 2025-11-04 · 10-Q 2025-08-11 · 10-Q 2025-05-08 · 10-K 2026-02-12 · 10-K 2024-08-14
Rated on July 19, 2026 · How the Rating Is Built
Highlighted are things our editorial team noticed: green = stands out as strong, red = deserves a closer look. No single metric is a verdict on its own — always read it in context.
Quarterly Figures
| Quarter | EPS (Earnings Per Share) | EPS YoY (%) | Sales ($M) | Sales YoY (%) | Net Margin (%) | OCF ($M) | FCF ($M) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024: Q4 | -3.51 | – | 308 | -1.90 | -40.90 | 7 | 25 |
| 2025: Q1 | -2.27 | – | 281 | -12.70 | -29.20 | 6 | -11 |
| 2025: Q2 | 3.39 | – | 283 | 3.40 | 53.70 | -59 | -74 |
| 2025: Q3 | -2.80 | – | 263 | 15.20 | -38.50 | 116 | 111 |
| 2025: Q4 | 1.38 | – | 394 | 27.90 | 16.40 | 180 | 165 |
| 2026: Q1 | 0.12 | – | 386 | 37.70 | 1.20 | 136 | 131 |
- EPS (Earnings Per Share):
- Quarterly profit divided by the total share count — how much of the profit works out to a single share.
- YoY (Year over Year):
- Change versus the same quarter a year ago — this is how you compare without seasonal distortion (e.g. the holiday shopping season).
- Sales:
- All revenue for the quarter, before any costs are deducted — the top line of the income statement.
- Net Margin:
- What percentage of sales is left over as profit in the end. Negative means the company is posting a loss.
- OCF (Operating Cash Flow):
- The cash that actually flows into the till from the core business during the quarter — harder to dress up than book profit.
- FCF (Free Cash Flow):
- Operating cash flow minus capital expenditures — the money that's genuinely free to use, say for paying down debt, buybacks, or dividends.
Assessment: Opportunities & Risks
Q4 2025 (+$28.9 million) and Q1 2026 (+$7.2 million) delivered the first two consecutive quarters of operating profit; adjusted operating income rose 138 percent to $261.8 million in 2025, operating cash flow reached $243.3 million (2025) plus $136.2 million (Q1 2026) — driven by higher revenue per show (10-K 2025; 10-Q as of 03/31/2026).
"The Wizard of Oz at Sphere": more than two million tickets in four and a half months, 500th showing in March 2026; plus residencies (Metallica, 24 shows from October 2026; Backstreet Boys, 56 nights) and multi-year sponsors (Anheuser-Busch, Delta, Evian) for the Exosphere (earnings releases 8-K Q4 2025/Q1 2026).
Five consecutive loss periods (operating losses of $166–341 million per period since FY 2022; 2025: $229.6 million), $336.4 million of annual depreciation; the 10-K literally expects significant operating losses to continue — the 2025 net profit stems from the $346.1 million restructuring book gain.
Revenue down 15 percent (2025), subscribers down 14.5 to 16 percent, substantially all affiliation revenue from four distributors, goodwill impairments of $61.2 + $65.4 million; the Knicks/Rangers rights expire after the 2028-29 seasons — $829.1 million of legacy debt matured unpaid in 2024 (10-K 2025).
Cash of $630.2 million (03/31/2026) against roughly $687 million of principal debt (convertible notes $258.8 million due 2028, LV loan $275 million due 2031, MSGN $153.5 million due 2029); the convertible can dilute the share count from 35.7 to as many as 46.9 million (10-K 2025, Note 14; 10-Q as of 03/31/2026).
The Dolan family holds ~72.3 percent of the voting power (dual-class structure) and sits on both sides of the 2029 rights negotiation; expansion, in turn, is capital-light: the Abu Dhabi franchise is funded by DCT (initiation fee partly received), National Harbor is a declared intent (10-K 2025).
Sphere Entertainment is the rare case in which both extremes are true at once: with "The Wizard of Oz" the orb has proven it can make money — two consecutive quarters of operating profit, $261.8 million of adjusted operating income, cash flow more than tripled, future expansion on someone else's dime. And the same company lists five loss periods in a row, expects further losses per its own 10-K, owes its net profit to a loan that was never repaid, and drags along a shrinking TV business whose crown jewels expire in 2029. Whoever invests here buys a one-of-a-kind venue with single-show risk at 4.5 times revenue — controlled by a family with 72.3 percent of the votes. Not investment advice.
- SPHR made the research list as rank 6 of our in-house Big Earnings Surprise scanner (U.S. selection, as of July 18, 2026) — part of our series on the top 20 of that selection.
- Scanner metrics (EPS surprises, Piotroski, Altman-Z, relative strength) use reported quarterly figures as of July 18, 2026; the EPS series (+$3.39/−$2.80/+$1.38/+$0.12) contains special items — the debt-restructuring gain (Q2 2025), a goodwill impairment (Q3 2025) and a $42.3 million tax benefit (Q4 2025).
- Price and market value figures (~$160, ~$5.9 billion) from the July 18, 2026 feed, sanity-checked against 36.8 million shares outstanding per the 10-Q as of March 31, 2026; analyses are evergreen, daily prices are not a buy argument.
About the Company
Sphere Entertainment Co. ist als Live-Unterhaltungs- und Medienunternehmen in den USA tätig.
| Employees | 1,100 |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | New York, NY |
| Website | sphereentertainmentco.com |
| IPO Date | 9. Apr 2020 |
| Next Earnings | 6. Aug 2026 |
Management
| Name | Title | Birth Year |
|---|---|---|
| James Lawrence Dolan | Executive Chairman & CEO | 1955 |
| Jennifer Koester | President & COO | 1974 |
| Robert Langer | Executive VP, CFO & Treasurer | 1965 |
| Christopher Winters | SVP, Controller & Principal Accounting Officer | 1981 |
| David Granville-Smith | Executive Vice President | 1968 |
| Felicia Yue | Executive VP & CTO | – |
| Ari Danes C.F.A. | Senior Vice President of Investor Relations & Treasury | – |
| Allen Lo | Executive VP & Chief Legal Officer | 1968 |
| Mikyl Cordova | Executive Vice President of Communications & Marketing | – |
| Ryan Thomas Dolan | Executive VP, Head of Event & Interactive Technology and Director | 1990 |
Executives per the latest required filings; titles kept in their original language. Source: fundamental data.
Chart
Interactive price chart (TradingView).
Data as of: July 20, 2026 · Source: fundamental data & SEC filings (annual and quarterly reports, 10-K/10-Q)
Note: pure fact-based analysis, not investment advice and not a solicitation to buy or sell. All figures without guarantee.