Beasley Media Group had set 2024 to be a year of real digital growth for the company, and that goal remains within sight at the halfway mark. At the very least, Q2 2024 was certainly a far cry from the same period in 2023, which ended with a $10.43 million loss.
In a Monday earnings call, CEO Caroline Beasley reported net revenue of $60.4 million, a slight decrease from $63.5 million in the same quarter last year, attributed primarily to a decline in traditional audio advertising and the loss of income from Beasley’s Wilmington, DE, station, which was sold in August 2023.
However, this was partly offset by gains in digital and political advertising revenues. Political brought in $586,000 throughout the quarter.
CFO Marie Tedesco noted that the consumer services vertical led Beasley Media Group’s revenue streams, accounting for 31.1% of total revenue. Retail revenue represented 16.2% of the quarter’s total. Entertainment revenues rose 4.5%, making up 16.1% of the total, driven by increased sports betting revenues in Boston and Charlotte, although Philadelphia saw declines. Sports betting alone contributed 5.6% to total revenue with $3.1 million earned.
Digital revenue, which represents 21.5% of the company’s total net revenue, showed an increase of 10.4% on a same-station basis year-over-year. This aligns with the company’s strategic goal of having the sector account for 20% to 25% of total revenue.
Beasley Media Group’s total operational expenses saw a noteworthy reduction, dropping from $67.9 million in Q2 2023 to $55.1 million in Q2 2024. This reduction is largely attributed to decreased corporate expenses and the absence of non-cash impairment losses which were prominent the previous year. The reduction in expenses contributed to an operating income of $5.37 million, a sharp turnaround from an operating loss of $4.50 million reported in the same quarter last year.
Put this all together and Beasley faced a net loss of $276,021, a vast improvement over the previous year’s net loss of $10.4 million.
For Q3, Caroline Beasley said pacings are currently down by low to mid-single digits, with July showing a slight increase but August and September pacing down. She also mentioned the company’s $6.7 million expense reduction initiative in May, was achieved through cutting 8.5% of full-time employees – a number higher than initially reported in Radio Ink.
A voluntary early retirement offer was also rolled out, with most positions not being backfilled. Headcount in sales departments has not decreased; instead, Beasley is adding technical sales specialists and has introduced a new Regional VP structure to oversee multiple markets.
Beasley closed by saying, “We are proud of our teams’ steadfast commitment to delivering exceptional content and services to our listeners, advertisers, online users and sports fans, and remain confident that the actions we are taking to transform our company and strengthen our balance sheet are laying the foundation for future growth and success.”
