Beasley Broadcast Group today announced operating results for the three-and nine-month periods ended September 30, 2024.
Third Quarter 2024 Highlights
• Revenue from new business grew 1.9% year-over-year
• Generated $2.7 million in political revenue
• Local revenue, including digital packages sold locally, accounted for 56.8% of net revenue
• Digital revenue grew 1.1% year-over-year to $11.3 million, or 11.7% year-over-year on a same station basis to $11.1 million
• Digital revenue accounted for 19.4% of net revenue and 19.1% of net revenue on a same station basis
• 35% of our total audience listens via the company’s digital platforms
Net revenue during the three months ended September 30, 2024 decreased 3.2% to $58.2 million, primarily reflecting a year-over-year decline in audio advertising and other revenue due to Beasley’s Wilmington station divestiture and esports and Guarantee Digital closures, as well as ongoing softness in the commercial advertising business, partially offset by growth in digital and political advertising revenue.
Beasley reported operating income of $1.2 million in the third quarter of 2024, compared to an operating loss of $85.5 million in the third quarter of 2023 reflecting non-cash impairment charges and the year-over-year decrease in operating and corporate expenses. For the comparable three months ended September 30, 2023, the Company recorded $88.8 million of non-cash impairment losses, primarily due to an increase in the discount rate due to certain risks associated with the U.S. economy and a decrease in the projected revenues used in the discounted cash flow analyses to estimate the fair value of FCC licenses and goodwill.
Beasley reported a net loss of approximately $3.6 million, or $2.33 per diluted share, in the three months ended September 30, 2024, compared to a net loss of $67.5 million, or $45.08 per diluted share, in the three months ended September 30, 2023. The year-over-year improvement was due to the factors described above and lower interest expense.
Adjusted EBITDA (a non-GAAP financial measure) was $5.6 million in the third quarter of 2024, compared to $6.0 million in the third quarter of 2023. The year-over-year decrease is primarily attributable to lower net revenue compared to the prior year period.
Commenting on the financial results, Caroline Beasley, Chief Executive Officer, said, “Beasley delivered third quarter net revenue of $58.2 million and same-station revenue growth of 0.5%, driven by strong political advertising revenue and a 11.7% increase in same-station digital revenue. The ongoing success of our digital transformation strategy continues to serve as an important offset to continued challenges in the audio advertising spot market. We remain intensely focused on leveraging our core market leadership across broadcasting, podcasting and digital audio to increase monetization.
At the same time, we continued to take the necessary actions that we believe will transform our business and position the Company to deliver long-term success. During the third quarter and subsequent to quarter end, Beasley executed on several strategic actions to further streamline the organization, strengthen our capital structure, and improve our stock’s marketability. As a result, we expect to exit 2024 with a healthier balance sheet, a leaner cost structure and a refined portfolio of leading audio and digital brands that will support our goals for delivering sustainable, profitable growth and the enhancement of long-term stockholder value. At the corporate level, we were excited to welcome Lauren Burrows Coleman, our new CFO, at the start of the month. She brings deep experience in finance and business strategy, as well as a strong track record of leadership.”