Sphere Entertainment cash registers jangle

Article posted by Coliseum, February 26^th, 2026

Image: The Sphere, Cory Doctorow, CC BY-SA 2.0

The American entertainment holding company – the Sphere Entertainment’s – fourth-quarter revenue and earnings soared past the Wall Street expectations recently sending the stock up 23 percent to $116.72 per share and over $100 per share for the first time.

‘yahoo!finance’ stated that the stock is up 145 percent over the past year and up 370 percent from its 2025 April low when the leisure stocks were dragged down by an escalating trade war and the Sphere faced potential bankruptcy for its MSG Networks Division.

Las Vegas (US)-based the Sphere Entertainment Company is a premier live entertainment and media company. The company’s portfolio includes Sphere, a next-generation entertainment medium that is redefining the future of live entertainment. The Sphere is powered by cutting-edge technologies that ignites the senses and transports the audiences to places both real and imagined. The first 17,600-capacity Sphere venue opened in Las Vegas in September 2023 and will host a wide variety of events including concerts and residencies from the world’s biggest artistes.

The Wall Street is a street in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It runs eight City blocks between the Broadway in the West and South Street and the East River in the East with a length of just under 2,000 feet. The term ‘Wall Street’ has become a metonym for the financial markets of the United States as a whole, the American financial services industry, the New York–based financial interests or the Financial District.

New York (US)-based the MSG Networks Division (MSG) is an American regional cable and satellite television network and radio service owned by the Sphere Entertainment – a spin-off of the main Madison Square Garden Company operation (itself a spin-off of the local cable provider Cablevision).

New York (US)-based the Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corporation is a world leader in live entertainment comprising the world-renowned venues and marquee brands. Utilizing its powerful assets and expertise they produce, present or host a variety of entertainment and sports events delivering unforgettable experiences for the millions of fans each year.

‘yahoo!finance’ further stated that the fourth quarter marked the first three months that the company made an operating profit since the Las Vegas Sphere opened in 2023. (The Sphere also reports a non-generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) adjusted operating income that accounts for the depreciation and other profit tweaks and the Adjusted Operating Income (AOI) has been consistently positive in recent quarters).

The 20,000-capacity Sphere (also known as the Sphere at the Venetian Resort, or the Las Vegas Sphere) is a music and entertainment arena in Paradise, Nevada, United States, East of the Las Vegas Strip.

The Las Vegas Strip is a stretch of the Las Vegas Boulevard in Clark County, Nevada (US) that is known for its concentration of resort hotels and casinos. The Strip, as it is known, is about 4.2 mi (6.8 km) long and is immediately South of the Las Vegas City limits in the unincorporated towns of Paradise and Winchester but is often referred to simply as ‘Las Vegas’.

The revenue of $394 million easily topped the analyst forecasts of $378 million as did the earnings per share of $1.23 ahead of the $0.16 projected loss as compiled by the S&P Global Market Intelligence. The reimagined ‘The Wizard of Oz’ Show (1939 American musical fantasy film) which opened in August was the biggest contributor to the three-month results.

The data and analytics software platform – New York (US)-based the S&P Global Market Intelligence – understands the importance of accurate, deep and insightful information. Its team of experts delivers unrivaled insights and leading data and technology solutions partnering with the customers to expand their perspective, operate with confidence and make decisions with conviction.

Stated James Dolan, Sphere head honcho, “The above results serve as a continued validation of the business model behind the Sphere. As we begin 2026, we remain focused on expanding the Sphere’s global footprint.”

The $2.3 billion Sphere in Las Vegas was the first step in Dolan’s global ambitions for a state-of-the-art venue concept with the next two set for Abu Dhabi (UAE) and Maryland’s National Harbor (US). In 2024, the second Sphere project was announced for the Department of Culture and Tourism in Abu Dhabi to fund construction and pay the Sphere a franchise initiation fee for the right to build the arena.

Last month, plans for a smaller-scale Sphere with a capacity of 6,000 seats were revealed outside of Washington, D.C. The Vegas Sphere has 17,600 seats and can hold up to 20,000 people. The $1 billion project will use a combination of public and private funding.

During the earnings call Dolan said the company was in “active discussions” with a “significant” number of domestic and international markets to build both large- and small-scale Spheres.

The Sphere Entertainment’s venue segment reported revenue of $274 million, up 62 percent from the prior 12 months. The revenues related to the Sphere Experience, which make up the bulk of the segment revenue, rose $109 million from 245 showings of ‘The Wizard of Oz’. The sponsorship and advertising revenue ticked up $4.2 million while the events-related revenue declined $3.1 million.

Despite strong ‘Oz’ sales the segment still posted a $6.5 million operating loss due to depreciation and amortization costs of $82 million but that was a $101 million improvement from the fourth quarter of 2024.

The revenue at the MSG Networks declined 14 percent to $120 million driven by the fewer subscribers and the lower affiliation rates. The segment’s operating profit of $35 million benefited from the reductions in the media rights fees for the Dolan-owned the National Basketball Association team – the New York Knicks (28 percent) – and the National Hockey League (NHL) team – the New York Rangers (18 percent) – as per the 2025 debt restructuring at the MSG Networks.

For the 12 months the Sphere reported revenue of $1.22 billion and an operating loss of $230 million.

The Las Vegas Sphere ranked first on both the Billboard’s (American weekly music magazine) and the Pollstar’s (a trade publication for the concert and live music industry) lists of the top-grossing venues worldwide in 2025.

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