IMAX (IMAX) AI Stock Analysis

• Market Cap: $2.31B
• Dividend Yield: N/A
• Average Volume (3M): 921.43K
• Price to Earnings (P/E): 68.0
• Beta (1Y): 0.22
• Revenue Growth: 9.30%
• EPS Growth: 67.19%
• Country: US
• Employees: 700
• Sector: Communication Services
• Sector Strength: 97
• Industry: Entertainment
• EPS (TTM): 0.58
• Shares Outstanding: 53,993,015
• 10 Day Avg. Volume: 831,319
• 30 Day Avg. Volume: 921,431
• PEG Ratio: 1.74
• Price to Book (P/B): 5.87
• Price to Sales (P/S): 4.83
• P/FCF Ratio: 16.67
• Enterprise Value/Market Cap: 1.04
• Enterprise Value/Revenue: 5.85
• Enterprise Value/Gross Profit: 9.84
• Enterprise Value/Ebitda: 23.06
• 1Y Price Target: $45.73
• Price Target Upside: 6.77% Upside
• Rating Consensus: Strong Buy
• Number of Analyst Covering: 11
• EPS Forecast (FY): 1.62
• Revenue Forecast (FY): $442.12M

• Rating: 73 Outperform
• Price Target: $41.00 ▼(-4.27% Downside)
• Action: Reiterated Date: 02/26/26
• Date: Action: Reiterated 02/26/26

The score is driven primarily by improved financial performance (strong recent profitability and cash flow) and a very bullish earnings outlook with ambitious margin and growth targets. Technicals are mildly supportive but not strongly momentum-driven, while the high P/E meaningfully reduces the overall score.

Positive Factors

Margin and Profitability Improvement

IMAX's step-up to a record ~45% adjusted EBITDA margin and materially higher net margins reflects durable operating leverage from its high-margin technology and content solutions. Higher margins increase cash generation and resilience, enabling reinvestment in network growth and content partnerships over multiple years.

Strong Cash Generation and Conversion

Consistent positive operating and free cash flow with strong EBITDA conversion underpins financial flexibility. Reliable cash generation supports system installs, content deals, and debt servicing, reducing reliance on external financing and enabling strategic investments over the medium term.

Network Expansion and Deep Content Slate

Growing installed base and accelerating system signings expand recurring revenue opportunities and strengthen IMAX's distribution advantage. Combined with a multi-year pipeline of studio tentpoles and filmmaker partnerships, this reinforces a durable competitive moat and predictable long-term demand for premium screenings.

Negative Factors

Cyclical Revenue and Cash Flow Volatility

IMAX's results are tied to box office cycles, content timing and release schedules, producing uneven revenue and FCF across years. This structural cyclicality reduces near-term predictability for investment and deleveraging plans and requires conservative planning through weaker theatrical periods.

Material Absolute Debt Load

While leverage has improved, the company retains a meaningful debt balance that constrains flexibility. In a down cycle or delayed content slate (or higher interest costs), servicing and refinancing needs could limit capital allocation to growth initiatives and increase sensitivity to operational hiccups.

Dependence on Exhibitor Pricing and China Timing

Limited control over ticket pricing and reliance on third-party exhibitor decisions cap IMAX's ability to capture demand upside. Coupled with concentration and timing risk in key markets like China, these structural dependencies can amplify revenue volatility and constrain margin sustainability in adverse release cycles.

IMAX Business Overview & Revenue Model

Company Description

IMAX Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an entertainment technology company worldwide. It offers cinematic solution through proprietary software, theater architecture, intellectual property, and specialized equipment. The company offers IMAX Digital Re-Mastering (DMR), a proprietary technology that digitally enhances the image resolution, visual clarity, and sound quality of motion picture films for projection on IMAX screens; IMAX theater systems to exhibitor customers through sales, leases, and joint revenue sharing arrangements; and digital projection systems. It also provides preventative and emergency maintenance services to IMAX network; distributes large-format documentary films; film post-production and quality control services for large-format films, and digital post-production services; owns and operates IMAX theaters; and rents 2D and 3D large-format film and digital cameras, as well as offers production advice and technical assistance services to documentary and Hollywood filmmakers. The company markets its theater systems through a direct sales force and marketing staff to science and natural history museums, zoos, aquaria, and other educational and cultural centers, as well as theme parks, private home theaters, tourist destination sites, fairs, and expositions. It owns or otherwise has rights to trademarks and trade names, which include IMAX, IMAX Dome, IMAX 3D, IMAX 3D Dome, Experience It in IMAX, The IMAX Experience, An IMAX Experience, An IMAX 3D Experience, IMAX DMR, DMR, IMAX Enhanced, IMAX nXos, and Films To The Fullest. As of December 31, 2021, the company had a network of 1,683 IMAX theater systems comprising 1,599 commercial multiplexes, 12 commercial destinations, and 72 institutional facilities operating in 87 countries and territories. IMAX Corporation was founded in 1967 and is headquartered in Mississauga, Canada.

How the Company Makes Money

IMAX generates revenue through multiple key streams, primarily from the sale and installation of its cinema systems to theaters and entertainment venues, where it charges a premium for its technology and services. The company also earns significant income from box office revenue-sharing agreements with theater operators, where it takes a percentage of ticket sales for films screened in its formats. Additionally, IMAX partners with filmmakers to produce and distribute films, often collaborating on marketing and promotional activities that can lead to further revenue opportunities. Strategic partnerships with major movie studios further enhance its earnings potential, as IMAX films often attract larger audiences due to the unique viewing experience they offer. The company's diverse revenue model is bolstered by ongoing maintenance contracts and upgrades for its installed systems, ensuring a continuous stream of income.

IMAX Financial Statement Overview

Summary

Financials show a clear step-up: strong profitability (gross margin ~60%, net margin ~20%) and solid recent free cash flow with improved cash conversion. Offsetting factors are uneven revenue growth across years and a still-material (though improving) debt position.

Income Statement

Profitability has strengthened materially: the latest annual period shows solid gross margin (~60%) and a much-improved net margin (~20%) versus low-to-mid single digits in 2023–2024 and losses in 2020–2022. Revenue rebounded over the cycle (strong growth in 2021 and 2023, modest growth in 2025), though growth has been uneven with a decline in 2024. Overall, earnings momentum is a clear positive, but the top-line trajectory is not consistently stable year-to-year.

Balance Sheet

Leverage appears manageable but not light. Debt-to-equity improved to ~0.72 in the latest annual period (down from ~0.93–1.00 in 2022–2024), and equity has grown versus 2022–2024. Returns on equity improved meaningfully (about 24% most recently), reflecting better profitability. Key watchouts are the still meaningful absolute debt load and the fact leverage was higher in recent history, suggesting sensitivity if operating conditions weaken.

Cash Flow

Cash generation is a notable strength in the latest annual period: operating cash flow (~$127M) and free cash flow (~$119M) are both strong, with sharp free cash flow growth (~30%) versus the prior year. Cash conversion improved substantially, with free cash flow close to net income (about 0.94x), compared with weaker conversion in 2023–2024 and negative free cash flow in 2021–2022. The main risk is cyclicality—cash flow performance has been volatile over the broader period.

Breakdown	Dec 2025	Dec 2024	Dec 2023	Dec 2022	Dec 2021
Income Statement
Total Revenue	410.21M	352.21M	374.84M	300.81M	254.88M
Gross Profit	237.57M	190.20M	214.34M	156.35M	134.41M
EBITDA	133.10M	111.28M	112.96M	52.77M	74.16M
Net Income	34.88M	26.06M	25.34M	-22.80M	-22.33M
Balance Sheet
Total Assets	894.03M	830.40M	814.67M	821.15M	883.25M
Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments	151.17M	100.59M	76.20M	97.40M	189.71M
Total Debt	244.03M	278.12M	252.06M	263.02M	226.11M
Total Liabilities	466.30M	452.18M	469.08M	491.39M	452.88M
Stockholders Equity	337.89M	299.47M	273.14M	263.36M	356.08M
Cash Flow
Free Cash Flow	118.90M	29.62M	25.78M	-15.30M	-11.71M
Operating Cash Flow	127.07M	70.84M	58.62M	17.32M	6.07M
Investing Cash Flow	-41.92M	-41.22M	-31.79M	-53.29M	-7.00K
Financing Cash Flow	-34.08M	-6.04M	-48.53M	-58.51M	-132.72M

IMAX Technical Analysis

• Technical Analysis Sentiment: Positive
• Last Price: 42.83
• 50DMA: Positive
• 100DMA: Positive
• 200DMA: Positive
• MACD: Negative
• RSI: Negative
• STOCH: Neutral

Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For IMAX, the sentiment is Positive. The current price of 42.83 is above the 20-day moving average (MA) of 37.07, above the 50-day MA of 36.47, and above the 200-day MA of 31.85, indicating a bullish trend. The MACD of 1.09 indicates Negative momentum. The RSI at 74.79 is Negative, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 72.72 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Positive sentiment for IMAX.

IMAX Peers Comparison

Name	Overall Rating	Market Cap	P/E Ratio	ROE	Dividend Yield	Revenue Growth	EPS Growth
IMAX	73 Outperform	$2.31B	68.05	10.94%	―	9.30%	67.19%
MSGE	65 Neutral	$2.98B	58.59	224.08%	―	0.68%	-80.73%
CNK	61 Neutral	$3.26B	27.09	27.31%	1.45%	9.70%	-31.62%
SPHR	61 Neutral	$4.23B	-398.96	1.44%	―	24.54%	-119.75%
Sector *	60 Neutral	$48.67B	4.58	-11.27%	4.14%	2.83%	-41.78%
LION	48 Neutral	$2.61B	-10.28	―	―	97.19%	-21.46%
AMC	44 Neutral	$614.27M	-0.89	―	―	9.74%	12.29%