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According to its parent Ryman Hospitality Properties, Opry Entertainment Group saw its revenue grow 57.3% to $77.2 million in Q3.
The post-pandemic boom is largely responsible, with the entertainment segment of its business up 86.2% ($183.6M) in the first nine months of 2022. CEO Colin Reed revealed on an investor call that Opry Entertainment Group delivered $21.1M of adjusted EBITDA in Q3, which was within the updated guidance range. This was also the first full quarter following the acquisition of Block 21 in Austin and the sale of 30% of its OEG business to partners Atairos and NBCUniversal.
“When you exclude these subsequent acquisitions and investments and look at our business on a same-store basis, our core entertainment business saw revenue growth of 19% and EBITDA growth of 21%, compared to the third quarter of 2019. This is the same type of growth we saw pre-pandemic as the city of Nashville begins to surge back to its prior trajectory,” Colin Reed told investors.
Reed spoke about major hotel developments across Nashville, mentioning 50 new hotel projects with 2,600 new rooms opening in the next two years. Another 4,000 rooms are planned for the greater Nashville area. “Many of these new visitors will end up seeing a show at the Ryman, touring the Opry House or spending an evening at Ole Red or the Wildhorse and we’ll be ready for them,” Reed adds.
“Altogether, we continue to expect OEG to deliver at least $72 million of adjusted EBITDA for the year, but we are tightening the range to $72M-$76M from their prior range of $72M-$80M,” adds Mark Fioravanti. Ryman Hospitality Properties, Inc. closed its acquisition of Block 21 from Stratus Properties Inc. in June 2022. The mixed-use complex is located in downtown Austin and features lodging, retail, office and entertainment spaces, including the W Austin Hotel and the ACL Live at Moody Theater.