Live Nation’s Loss Widens

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Live Nation Inc. on Thursday said that its net loss grew larger in the second quarter, due both to lower concert revenue and higher costs related to its pending merger with TicketMaster Entertainment Inc.

After the markets closed, the Beverly Hills concert promoter reported a net loss of $27.2 million (-33 cents per share), compared with a net loss of $652,000 (-1 cent) a year ago.

Total revenue declined 6 percent to $1.06 billion, some of which the company blamed on unfavorable foreign exchange rates. North American music revenue was nearly flat at $693 million, while international revenue fell 19 percent to $332 million.

Excluding one-time items, Live Nation had a loss of $12.32 million (-15 cents). Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters on average expected adjusted net income of 17 cents per share on $1.16 billion in revenue.

Live Nation recorded a $14.9 million expense related to its proposed merger with West Hollywood’s TicketMaster, which is undergoing regulatory review.

The company said it sold 4.3 million tickets in the second quarter, nearly 500,000 of them through its “no service fee Wednesday” promotion.

“We believe that any reduction in margin that we sacrifice on the ticket purchase will be more than made up for in incremental ticket sales and additional onsite spending,” Chief Executive Michael Rapino said in a statement, noting that the promotion’s benefit will be reflected in the third quarter.

Live Nation shares closed down 1 cent, or less than 1 percent, to $6.08 on the Nasdaq.