Live Nation just rounded out a year of record concert attendance and revenue with a fourth-quarter earnings beat, sending the stock up slightly as the company said it’s preparing for an even bigger year in 2025.
The live concert giant reported $5.68 billion in fourth-quarter revenue after the closing bell on Thursday, coming in slightly above forecasts of $5.63 billion, according to analysts polled by Bloomberg.
The figure brings the company’s full-year revenue to a record $23.16 billion, rounding out the end of not just a big but a huge year for live music, led by tours from Bruce Springsteen, The Rolling Stones, Bad Bunny, Oasis, and, of course, Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour.
Live Nation — which owns hundreds of venues, not to mention ticketing platform Ticketmaster — saw concert attendance rise to an all-time high of 151 million, eclipsing a previous record of 146 million set in 2023.
Looking forward, the entertainment giant forecast a bigger year for live music in 2025 owing to a strong global concert pipeline, including the likes of Shakira, Rüfüs Du Sol, and Coldplay. The company failed to specify exact numbers, but said it expects operating income to post double-digit growth over the year, though management warned that foreign exchange fluctuations could drag on Q1 results.
Live Nation’s stock has surged in the last year to a new record, up 66% to far surpass the S&P 500’s 23% rise. The company came out of its pandemic-era slump stronger than ever amid a booming “experience economy,” plus a strategic shift from leasing concert venues to actually owning or controlling them via long-term leases or equity rights. The company has also simultaneously built up a brand partnership empire, with ownership stakes in (or partnerships with) many of the food and drink brands sold at its venues.
Those other lines of business, with comparably higher margins than its ticketing business, have paid off considerably. Last year, ticketing brought in $2.99 billion of the company’s revenue, while its revenue from concerts (including VIP seats, food, drinks, parking, insurance, and other upgrades) totaled $19.02 billion, the company reported.
But Live Nation’s so-called “flywheel” business model — and surge-priced tickets — hasn’t been without pushback from fans, independent music venues, and, perhaps most notably, the Justice Department. Last spring, the DOJ launched an antitrust lawsuit against Live Nation and Ticketmaster, alleging that its live music empire “harms fans, innovation, artists, and venues.”
The company’s executives have appeared hopeful, though, that such regulation will ease under President Trump.
Kelly Cloonan is a journalist who has written for Business Insider and Fast Company.