Demand for live entertainment such as concerts and shows isn’t showing signs of slowing even as concern grows that the consumer is stretched and poised to cut back on discretionary spending, according to analysts, who say to buy Live Nation Entertainment stock. Analysts at Deutsche Bank, JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs said buy Live Nation after its recent decline, as shares are trading at a discount after the market’s latest tailspin. Live Nation is off by nearly 19% over the past month, about three times more than the 6.5% decline in the S & P 500. Wall Street posits that live entertainment is less cyclical and specialized compared to other forms of discretionary consumer spending, which could be a catalyst for the stock moving forward. “Concerts are a discretionary purchase and we’re not dismissive of the risks, but as we’ve written previously and cover again here, we believe there are secular and bespoke … factors to consider which give us confidence in our forecasts,” JPMorgan analysts led by David Karnovsky wrote Thursday. The bank’s $170 per share price target, alongside an overweight investment rating, implies more than 37% upside over the next 12 months. LYV YTD mountain Live Nation stock in 2025. Consumer sentiment has weakened in 2025 as inflation stays above the Fed’s 2% target and the White House trumpets new tariffs on imports from China, Canada and Mexico. Last week, the University of Michigan Survey of Consumers for March showed its lowest reading since 2022. Deutsche Bank also forecasts strong demand for concerts and shows, saying Live Nation is a top pick in its coverage of entertainment companies. “Live Nation continues to observe healthy demand, and we believe consumer spending on live events should hold up relatively well in the event of a macroeconomic downturn (compared to other forms of discretionary spending),” analyst Benjamin Soff wrote in a March 11 note. Soff also has a $170 per share price target and a buy rating. Further protecting Live Nation from any weakness in consumer spending is ticket sales on the secondary market, according to Goldman Sachs. A large secondary market helps protect the live music industry from cyclical risks, analyst Stephen Laszczyk wrote in a note earlier this week. “We believe that the difference in ticket prices between the ‘fair market value’ and the price that the ticket is sold for on the primary market has insulated the Live Music industry from weaker consumer spending,” Goldman said. Laszczyk also has a $170 per share price target on Live Nation stock.
