Madison Square Garden, its two marquee sports teams having enjoyed their best collective seasons in 15 years, is reaping its reward.
Season-ticket holders of the Knicks and Rangers are renewing their tickets at a robust pace — despite price increases.
Ninety-five percent of Knicks season ticket holders renewed compared with 90 percent the prior year, Garden officials said.
Rangers season tickets are being renewed at a 90 percent rate — up from 85 percent the prior year.
The robust renewal rates come despite a 5 percent hike for the Knicks and a 9.5 percent jump for the Rangers.
“Coming off an incredible playoff run and an active and successful offseason, it should come as no surprise that Rangers season ticket holders renewed at such a high rate,” said Scott O’Neil, President, MSG Sports.
Meanwhile, shares of MSG jumped 2.9 percent after the company reported profits tripled to $28.6 million, or 37 cents a share, on a 42 percent rise in revenue, to $332.9 million.
Both beat Wall Street forecasts.
The strong fiscal fourth quarter was fueled by added playoff games played by the Rangers and Knicks and by a big boost in revenue from a new carriage deal with Time Warner Cable.
Affiliate fees rose 20 percent to $167 million for the unit that also includes the MSG channels and music service Fuse.
Susquehanna media analyst Vasily Karasyov noted: “The fourth quarter results look stronger than we expected in every segment.
“An increase in playoff games, both for the Knicks and the Rangers, was a major driver of upside in the quarter (recognized in the MSG Sports segment results).”