While 2023 held financial challenges for Beasley Media Group, the company finished the year on a bright note by way of extra income, both expected and unexpected. The broadcaster released its year-end financials before a Monday morning earnings call.
For the year, Beasley finished with $247.1 million in net revenue – a decline from 2022’s $256.4 million. Yearly operating losses ballooned from $34.3 million to $82.0 million. However, the company reported a significant improvement in Q4.
With a net income of $6.383 million, the final three months of 2023 were a far cry from the net loss of $24.51 million posted in Q4 2022. Despite the positive shift in net income, Beasley faced a decline in net revenue to $65.75 million from $72.03 million.
Losses were attributed to reduced cyclical political advertising and a continued decline in commercial advertising revenue, pointing to a persistent softness in the agency business.
Q4’s income was largely attributed to digital. “Digital has greatly surpassed national,” said Beasley Media CEO Caroline Beasley. Digital revenue rose 11.4% year-over-year in 2023, representing 18.4% of the company’s total revenue for the year. Beasley expressed optimism about the future, projecting digital revenue to make up 20% to 25% of total revenue in 2024.
The company also cited lowered operating expenses around “headcount reductions.”
During Q4, Beasley’s divestment of its lone Delaware station, Wilmington’s WJBR, led to additional income. They also had some unplanned cash come their way with a $6 million gain related to the disbanding of the Overwatch e-sports league. They were paid a franchise fee for their ownership of the Houston Outlaws.
Looking to 2024, the company is light on Q1 political ad spend expectations, but expects $11 million by the end of the year, coming mostly in the second half. Beasley is also the latest broadcast company set to receive a payment from the BMI sale to New Mountain Capital, expecting a payday in the neighborhood of $6 million.
The company is focusing heavily on debt reduction.
Caroline Beasley closed by saying, “While macroeconomic uncertainty persists, we are cautiously optimistic about our 2024 growth prospects given our solid foundation, including powerful brands, leading audience share, effective strategies, and anticipated strong political spending in the back half of the year.”
