Is IMAX the Better Multiplex Play Than AMC Entertainment?
It's too soon to tell if U.S. movie theaters will ever return to their former glory, but there's no denying that folks are starting to come back to the multiplex. The nearly $190 million that stateside exhibitors rang up in ticket sales in April is the best month that the industry has had since March of last year.
Like a Hollywood film itself, it's important that we frame things correctly. Movie houses topped $1 billion in box office receipts in April of 2018 and 2019. The industry is less than 20% back right now. However, investors have been bidding up shares of AMC Entertainment Holdings (NYSE: AMC) and to a lesser extent IMAX (NYSE: IMAX) on the expected rebound.
AMC is one of this year's biggest winners, soaring nearly sixfold as a meme stock. IMAX, a provider of supersized theatrical experiences, has only seen its stock move 19% higher heading into the new trading week, even though it has more than tripled off of last year's initial pandemic low. IMAX doesn't generate the same kind of speculative buzz as the country's leading multiplex operator, but it could be the smarter play on the revival of the industry.
Source Fool.com
