Lions Gate’s loss is flat as home video sales fall

Lions Gate Entertainment Corp., the independent producer of movies including “Saw III” and “Employee of the Month,” reported a quarterly loss that was about the same as a year earlier, as home video revenue slipped.

The net loss in the company’s fiscal second quarter was $14.4 million, or 14 cents a share, compared with a net loss of $14.1 million, or 14 cents, a year earlier. Revenue advanced to $218.2 million from $211 million.

Analysts, on average, had forecast a loss of 3 cents a share before certain items and revenue of $220.2 million, according to Reuters Estimates.

The company said revenue from home video sales, its largest business, fell 4% to $115.1 million as it released fewer movies on DVD during the quarter. Revenue also declined in television production, mainly because of lower international revenue and decreased domestic licensing revenue.

Theatrical revenue of $20.5 million rose 9%, driven mainly by the box-office successes “The Descent” and “Crank,” Lions Gate said.

Santa Monica-based Lions Gate said its backlog of $248.7 million in unrecorded revenue from filmed entertainment contracts was a company record. The backlog will fuel revenue in future quarters.

Shares of Lions Gate fell 1.9% to $10.45 in extended trading after closing up 7 cents at $10.65.