Sphere Follows Yellow Brick Road to Record Profits

According to Sphere Entertainment Co. (NYSE: SPHR), its reimagining of “The Wizard of Oz” is generating blockbuster returns, with over $130 million in receipts from 1 million tickets sold as of October 17, just seven weeks after its August 28 premiere.

The company had previously announced on September 15 that it had sold 500,000 tickets, earning $65 million, suggesting a consistent monthly revenue pace of $2 million per day.

Shares of SPHR surged for two days on the good news. On Tuesday, the company’s stock climbed 5.5% to $66.54, following a 7.5% gain on Monday.  Year-to-date, SPHR is up 56.5%, significantly outperforming the S&P 500’s 14.5% rally.

They’re Off to See the Wizard

While its estimated $100 million production cost was a gamble, “The Wizard of Oz” has more than paid off. (Analysts at Wolfe Research project that the production could cross the $500 million revenue threshold sometime next year.)

In fact, if current demand can be sustained, it could very well single-handedly turn the company’s financial fortunes around.

Though Sphere Entertainment has not disclosed its total debt load in recent filings, pre-opening reports from Bloomberg and Reuters cited approximately $1.8 billion in debt, largely tied to the venue’s $2.3 billion construction and tech infrastructure costs. Operating costs were estimated at $20 million per quarter in 2024, though recent profitability suggests that the venue’s financial trajectory is improving.

And there is every reason to believe that that demand for this production can be sustained, since it is only playing on one screen on Earth and there are hundreds of millions of “Wizard of Oz” fans who haven’t seen it yet.

The 75-minute experience — trimmed by 20 minutes from the 1939 original to allow up to eight daily screenings — was rebuilt using advanced AI and CG technology to fit Sphere’s 160,000-square-foot wraparound LED screen, the largest of its kind.

The production also includes immersive enhancements including wind, lighting effects, custom scents and haptic seat feedback.

“The Wizard of Oz” at the Las Vegas Sphere plays multiple times per day. The cheapest seats ($129-$137) are weekday morning and afternoon showings, while evening seats go for between $170-$182. Tickets are available at the Sphere website.