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EX - 99.1 2 rdi - 20210517xex99_1.htm EX - 99.1 12 READING INTERNATIONAL For more information , contact : Gilbert Avanes – EVP , CFO , and Treasurer - Andrzej Matyczynski - EVP Global Operations ( 213 ) 235-2240 Reading International Reports First Quarter 2021 Results and COVID - 19 Business Update Revenues Returning as Cinemas Reopen Bank Debt Reduced Stockholder Equity Increased Earnings Call Webcast to Discuss Financial Results and COVID - 19 Updates Scheduled to Post to Corporate Website on Wednesday , May 19 , 2021 Culver City , California - ( BUSINESS WIRE ) May 17 , 2021 : Reading International , Inc. ( NASDAQ : RDI ) , an internationally diversified cinema and real estate company with operations and assets in the United States , Australia , and New Zealand , today announced its results for the first quarter ended March 31 , 2021 ( " Q1 2021 " ) and certain events anticipated to have a material impact upon our Company going forward . President and Chief Executive Officer , Ellen Cotter said , " While our Company's cinema operations in the first quarter continued to be negatively impacted by COVID - 19 , our " two business / three country " diversified business strategy continued to support our Company through the unprecedented COVID - 19 pandemic . The successful monetization of our raw land in Manukau , New Zealand and Coachella , California has provided the liquidity to support our Company and its operations as it continues to feel the ongoing impacts of COVID - 19 . To provide our Company with further liquidity through 2021 and 2022 , we are monetizing our Auburn Redyard Centre ( which includes the Telstra building and 114,000 square feet of undeveloped land ) located in a growth corridor of Sydney , Australia and our Royal George Theatre in Chicago . We are in exclusive negotiations with a qualified buyer to sell the Auburn Redyard property , and on May 14 , 2021 , we entered into a definitive purchase and sale agreement with respect to our Royal George Theatre property . While no assurances can be given , we anticipate that both transactions will close during the second quarter of 2021. While these real estate sales have assisted us in paying down debt and provided us with a cash safety net , our business plan is to ultimately redeploy this cash into the further development of our Company's asset base and to the fullest extent possible , to continue to operate our cinema business as a standalone business segment . We have carefully selected the assets to be monetized , and do not see this as a retreat from our ultimate two business strategy . " Cotter continued , " After considering a variety of alternatives , we determined that it would be in the best interests of our Company and our stockholders generally , to not dilute equity by issuing stock in the middle of an unprecedented pandemic nor to mortgage our future with high - cost debt . Accordingly , we have chosen to monetize certain assets that are not subject to distressed market conditions or fire sale pricing . We believe that we have in fact achieved premium prices with respect to the real estate assets monetized to date . " " Regarding our global cinema business , we're also pleased to be seeing a light at the end of the tunnel as the U.S. has been successful in its mass production and distribution of COVID - 19 vaccines and Australia and New Zealand continue to keep infection rates low . We are pleased to report that , as of today , 91 % of our 61 movie theaters are trading across Australia , New Zealand and the U.S. And , while the first quarter global movie release schedule could not compare to pre - pandemic levels , we were encouraged by the global box office performance of Godzilla vs. Kong , which demonstrated the pent - up demand among movie - goers to return to the big screen , " said Cotter .