SM Entertainment released its 2023 financial report.
On February 7, SM Entertainment released its Q4 2023 report. The report revealed the company’s financial performance for 2023, revealing consolidated sales of 960 billion KRW (722.5 million USD) and an operating profit of 115.4 billion KRW (87 million USD). These figures represent a 13% increase in sales and a 27% rise in operating profit, respectively, compared to the previous year. Additionally, net profit surged 41.2% year-over-year, reaching 115.8 billion (87.2 million USD) KRW.
The company attributed this growth to the successful sales of new albums and its artists’ expanded lineup of offline concerts. Last year witnessed a 12% increase in album and song releases, totaling 64, with new album sales hitting a record high of 20.1 million units, a remarkable 67% increase from the previous year. Concert events saw an extraordinary surge, with a 224% increase compared to last year, totaling 340 concerts held.
Notably, NCT DREAM’s 3rd regular album, “ISTJ,” recorded a quadruple million sellers (over 4 million), aespa’s 3rd mini album, “MY WORLD,” recorded a double million sellers (over 2 million), and EXO, NCT, NCT 127, and RIIZE also achieved a million sellers. Last year, NCT DREAM successfully held 41 performances in 26 regions worldwide, including North America, South America, Europe, and Asia. Aespa also successfully performed 31 concerts in 21 regions worldwide, including North America, Europe, and Asia.
However, in the fourth quarter of 2023, SM experienced a slight downturn, with consolidated sales amounting to 250 billion KRW (188.1 million USD) and operating profit reaching 10.9 billion KRW (8.9 million USD), marking decreases of 3.4% and 51.7%, respectively, compared to the fourth quarter of 2022. The decline in operating profit was primarily attributed to reduced sales from advertising and content-related subsidiaries and the impact of new additions to SM’s brand marketing efforts. On a standalone basis, the fourth quarter revenue amounted to 163.7 billion KRW (125.9 million USD), reflecting a 7.2% increase compared to last year. However, the operating profit decreased by 13.8% year-over-year to 20.6 billion KRW (15.5 million USD).
SM will also introduce a diverse lineup of artists. Starting with RIIZE’s single “Love 119,” which was released in January and is sweeping the music charts, the activities of significant artists, including the debut of the rookie boy group NCT WISH’s single (Korea/Japan) in February and the release of NCT DREAM’s mini album in March, will continue. Anticipating continued growth, SM aims for consolidated sales of 1.18 trillion KRW (888 million USD) and an operating profit of 160 billion KRW (120.4 million USD) for the fiscal year 2024.
In a strategic move to enhance shareholder value, SM announced its first-ever share buyback and shareholder return policy. At a board meeting on the same day, the company unveiled plans to distribute approximately 28.1 billion KRW (21.1 million USD) in dividends and cancel 240,000 shares of the company’s treasury shares. The proposed cash dividend stands at 1,200 won per ordinary share, with a dividend payout ratio of 34%.
SM CEO Jang Cheol Hyuk said, “We decided to pay dividends at the same level as the previous year in consideration of securing investment resources,” adding, “We will continue to increase corporate value by raising shareholder value through the retirement of our shares.”
Most Commented