SM Entertainment posted an operating profit of 38.6 billion won in the first quarter this year.
SM said on the 6th that, on a consolidation basis, first-quarter revenue came to 279.1 billion won and operating profit to 38.6 billion won. The figures were up 20.6% and 18.5%, respectively, from a year earlier.
Standalone first-quarter revenue was tallied at 189.3 billion won, up 14.4% from a year earlier. Concert revenue rose 56.0%, and MD and licensing revenue also grew 20.3%. Net income came to 38.9 billion won, up 20.9% year over year.
SM boosted revenue in the first quarter with concerts by core groups such as Super Junior, NCT Dream, aespa, and RIIZE. In the MD and licensing institutional sector, sales of light sticks and planned MD increased on the back of events tied to EXO's full-length album release, the NCT WISH project, and the aespa tour effect.
Performance at major subsidiaries also improved. SM C&C saw growth in advertising and management revenue, and SM Japan increased revenue as affiliated artists expanded overseas activities. DearU also contributed to revenue after consolidation. Combined operating profit at subsidiaries swung to a profit from a year earlier.
SM is currently pushing to strengthen intellectual property (IP) competitiveness and expand globally. Hearts2Hearts, a rookie girl group that debuted last year, is gaining traction in overseas markets. The lead tracks "The Chase" and "STYLE" have each surpassed 100 million cumulative streams on Spotify.
In the second quarter, Taeyong, aespa, and NCT WISH will release full-length albums, while SHINee, RIIZE, and Hearts2Hearts will release mini-albums, and Ryeowook will release a single. In the third quarter, Taeyeon and NCT 127 will release full-length albums, and Super Junior-83z, Red Velvet, and WayV will release mini-albums, with Yesung, Minho, and U-Know Yunho also set to roll out projects.