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Side-by-side financial comparison of IMAX CORP (IMAX) and El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (LOCO). Click either name above to swap in a different company.

IMAX CORP is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($125.2M vs $123.5M, roughly 1.0× El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc.). El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. runs the higher net margin — 5.3% vs 0.5%, a 4.8% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, IMAX CORP posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (35.1% vs 8.1%). IMAX CORP produced more free cash flow last quarter ($28.0M vs $5.1M). Over the past eight quarters, IMAX CORP's revenue compounded faster (25.8% CAGR vs 3.1%).

IMAX Corporation is a Canadian production theatre company which designs and manufactures IMAX cameras and projection systems as well as performing film development, production, post-production and distribution to IMAX-affiliated theatres worldwide. Founded in Montreal in 1967, it has headquarters in the Toronto area, and operations in New York City and Los Angeles.

El Pollo Loco, Inc., is a restaurant chain based in the United States, specializing in Mexican-style grilled chicken. Restaurant service consists of dine-in and take-out, with some locations offering drive-through options. The company is headquartered in Costa Mesa, California, and operates about 500 company-owned and franchised restaurants in the Southwestern United States.

IMAX vs LOCO — Head-to-Head

Bigger by revenue
IMAX
IMAX
1.0× larger
IMAX
$125.2M
$123.5M
LOCO
Growing faster (revenue YoY)
IMAX
IMAX
+27.0% gap
IMAX
35.1%
8.1%
LOCO
Higher net margin
LOCO
LOCO
4.8% more per $
LOCO
5.3%
0.5%
IMAX
More free cash flow
IMAX
IMAX
$22.9M more FCF
IMAX
$28.0M
$5.1M
LOCO
Faster 2-yr revenue CAGR
IMAX
IMAX
Annualised
IMAX
25.8%
3.1%
LOCO

Income Statement — Q4 FY2025 vs Q4 FY2025

Metric
IMAX
IMAX
LOCO
LOCO
Revenue
$125.2M
$123.5M
Net Profit
$637.0K
$6.5M
Gross Margin
57.6%
Operating Margin
19.3%
8.3%
Net Margin
0.5%
5.3%
Revenue YoY
35.1%
8.1%
Net Profit YoY
-88.0%
9.9%
EPS (diluted)
$0.02
$0.22

Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.

8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend

Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.

Revenue
IMAX
IMAX
LOCO
LOCO
Q4 25
$125.2M
$123.5M
Q3 25
$106.7M
$121.5M
Q2 25
$91.7M
$125.8M
Q1 25
$86.7M
$119.2M
Q4 24
$92.7M
$114.3M
Q3 24
$91.5M
$120.4M
Q2 24
$89.0M
$122.2M
Q1 24
$79.1M
$116.2M
Net Profit
IMAX
IMAX
LOCO
LOCO
Q4 25
$637.0K
$6.5M
Q3 25
$20.7M
$7.4M
Q2 25
$11.3M
$7.1M
Q1 25
$2.3M
$5.5M
Q4 24
$5.3M
$6.0M
Q3 24
$13.9M
$6.2M
Q2 24
$3.6M
$7.6M
Q1 24
$3.3M
$5.9M
Gross Margin
IMAX
IMAX
LOCO
LOCO
Q4 25
57.6%
Q3 25
63.1%
Q2 25
58.5%
Q1 25
61.4%
Q4 24
52.2%
Q3 24
55.8%
Q2 24
49.4%
Q1 24
59.3%
Operating Margin
IMAX
IMAX
LOCO
LOCO
Q4 25
19.3%
8.3%
Q3 25
27.2%
9.4%
Q2 25
15.6%
9.0%
Q1 25
19.3%
7.5%
Q4 24
10.3%
7.9%
Q3 24
21.2%
8.4%
Q2 24
3.2%
10.1%
Q1 24
15.3%
8.3%
Net Margin
IMAX
IMAX
LOCO
LOCO
Q4 25
0.5%
5.3%
Q3 25
19.4%
6.1%
Q2 25
12.3%
5.6%
Q1 25
2.7%
4.6%
Q4 24
5.7%
5.2%
Q3 24
15.2%
5.1%
Q2 24
4.0%
6.2%
Q1 24
4.1%
5.1%
EPS (diluted)
IMAX
IMAX
LOCO
LOCO
Q4 25
$0.02
$0.22
Q3 25
$0.37
$0.25
Q2 25
$0.20
$0.24
Q1 25
$0.04
$0.19
Q4 24
$0.09
$0.21
Q3 24
$0.26
$0.21
Q2 24
$0.07
$0.25
Q1 24
$0.06
$0.19

Balance Sheet & Financial Strength

Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.

Metric
IMAX
IMAX
LOCO
LOCO
Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand
$151.2M
$6.2M
Total DebtLower is stronger
$51.0M
Stockholders' EquityBook value
$337.9M
$291.1M
Total Assets
$894.0M
$606.6M
Debt / EquityLower = less leverage
0.18×

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Cash + ST Investments
IMAX
IMAX
LOCO
LOCO
Q4 25
$151.2M
$6.2M
Q3 25
$143.1M
$10.9M
Q2 25
$109.3M
$9.0M
Q1 25
$97.1M
$4.3M
Q4 24
$100.6M
$2.5M
Q3 24
$104.5M
$7.9M
Q2 24
$91.6M
$10.5M
Q1 24
$81.0M
$9.1M
Total Debt
IMAX
IMAX
LOCO
LOCO
Q4 25
$51.0M
Q3 25
$61.0M
Q2 25
$69.0M
Q1 25
$73.0M
Q4 24
$71.0M
Q3 24
$76.0M
Q2 24
$87.0M
Q1 24
$80.0M
Stockholders' Equity
IMAX
IMAX
LOCO
LOCO
Q4 25
$337.9M
$291.1M
Q3 25
$349.5M
$282.9M
Q2 25
$320.4M
$274.2M
Q1 25
$299.5M
$265.7M
Q4 24
$299.5M
$260.7M
Q3 24
$289.4M
$255.2M
Q2 24
$267.2M
$248.6M
Q1 24
$258.8M
$256.3M
Total Assets
IMAX
IMAX
LOCO
LOCO
Q4 25
$894.0M
$606.6M
Q3 25
$889.6M
$602.7M
Q2 25
$868.6M
$596.8M
Q1 25
$848.3M
$590.5M
Q4 24
$830.4M
$592.0M
Q3 24
$847.6M
$590.0M
Q2 24
$827.4M
$593.8M
Q1 24
$824.1M
$598.0M
Debt / Equity
IMAX
IMAX
LOCO
LOCO
Q4 25
0.18×
Q3 25
0.22×
Q2 25
0.25×
Q1 25
0.27×
Q4 24
0.27×
Q3 24
0.30×
Q2 24
0.35×
Q1 24
0.31×

Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency

How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.

Metric
IMAX
IMAX
LOCO
LOCO
Operating Cash FlowLast quarter
$29.4M
$13.9M
Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex
$28.0M
$5.1M
FCF MarginFCF / Revenue
22.3%
4.1%
Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue
1.1%
7.1%
Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit
46.11×
2.13×
TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters
$118.9M
$25.4M

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Operating Cash Flow
IMAX
IMAX
LOCO
LOCO
Q4 25
$29.4M
$13.9M
Q3 25
$67.5M
$15.3M
Q2 25
$23.2M
$14.1M
Q1 25
$7.0M
$4.7M
Q4 24
$11.5M
$5.6M
Q3 24
$35.3M
$13.0M
Q2 24
$35.0M
$17.0M
Q1 24
$-11.0M
$11.2M
Free Cash Flow
IMAX
IMAX
LOCO
LOCO
Q4 25
$28.0M
$5.1M
Q3 25
$64.8M
$9.9M
Q2 25
$20.9M
$9.1M
Q1 25
$5.3M
$1.3M
Q4 24
$6.9M
$1.1M
Q3 24
$34.2M
$9.1M
Q2 24
$33.5M
$10.4M
Q1 24
$-12.1M
$7.0M
FCF Margin
IMAX
IMAX
LOCO
LOCO
Q4 25
22.3%
4.1%
Q3 25
60.7%
8.2%
Q2 25
22.8%
7.2%
Q1 25
6.1%
1.1%
Q4 24
7.4%
1.0%
Q3 24
37.3%
7.6%
Q2 24
37.6%
8.5%
Q1 24
-15.3%
6.0%
Capex Intensity
IMAX
IMAX
LOCO
LOCO
Q4 25
1.1%
7.1%
Q3 25
2.6%
4.4%
Q2 25
2.6%
4.0%
Q1 25
1.9%
2.8%
Q4 24
5.0%
3.9%
Q3 24
1.2%
3.2%
Q2 24
1.8%
5.3%
Q1 24
1.4%
3.6%
Cash Conversion
IMAX
IMAX
LOCO
LOCO
Q4 25
46.11×
2.13×
Q3 25
3.27×
2.08×
Q2 25
2.06×
1.99×
Q1 25
2.99×
0.86×
Q4 24
2.16×
0.95×
Q3 24
2.54×
2.11×
Q2 24
9.78×
2.22×
Q1 24
-3.35×
1.89×

Financial Flow Comparison

Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.

Revenue Breakdown by Segment

IMAX
IMAX

Technology Sales$46.6M37%
Image Enhancement And Maintenance Services$38.1M30%
Joint Revenue Sharing Arrangement$20.4M16%
Maintenance$16.3M13%
Finance Income$2.8M2%
Other Content Solutions$1.6M1%

LOCO
LOCO

Services$102.4M83%
Franchise$13.0M11%
Franchise Advertising Fee$8.1M7%

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