REG - Audioboom Group PLC - Q3 Trading Update

AudioboomAnnouncement

17/10/2022 07:00

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RNS Number : 0170D  Audioboom Group PLC  17 October 2022

 

This announcement contains inside information as stipulated under the UK
Market Abuse Regulations ("MAR").

 

Audioboom Group plc

("Audioboom", the "Group" or the "Company")

 

Q3 Trading Update

44% YTD revenue growth

125% YTD adjusted EBITDA growth

2022 contracted revenue of US$73m

 

Audioboom (AIM: BOOM), the leading global podcast company, is pleased to
provide a trading update for the quarter ended 30 September 2022.

 

Financial and operating highlights

 

·      Total revenue for the nine months to 30 September of US$57.1
million, up 44% on the same period last year (US$39.7 million)

·      Quarterly revenue of US$16.2 million (Q3 2021: US$16.9 million)
as global economic headwinds impacted advertising demand - however, a recovery
is already underway with August and September up on the July low-point and
further improvements forecast throughout Q4 with management expecting a
positive end to the year

·      Audioboom's growth of 44% continues to significantly outpace
wider market growth of 15%((1))

·      Total adjusted EBITDA((2)) profit for the nine months to 30
September of US$2.7 million, up 125% on the same period last year (US$1.2
million).  Quarterly adjusted EBITDA((1)) profit of US$0.6 million (Q3 2021:
US$1.0 million)

·      Average Q3 global monthly downloads of 107.5 million, up 9% on Q3
2021 (99.1 million)

·      Average Q3 brand advertiser count of 333 (Q3 2021: 370), lower
due to headwinds impacting advertising demand

·      Average Q3 global revenue per 1,000 downloads (eCPM) of US$50.03
(Q3 2021: US$54.77)

·      Group cash of US$8.0 million (30 June 2022: US$5.8 million) with
a further US$1.7 million available via an undrawn overdraft

·      The Company has contracted revenue in excess of US$73.0 million
for 2022 through advance advertising bookings

 

Key Q3 2022 commercial developments

 

·      Continued strong growth of Showcase, our new global advertising
marketplace. Revenue from Showcase in Q3 2022 was more than 75% greater than
in Q3 2021 and more than 115% greater on a year-to-date basis. Showcase is now
contributing more than 14% to Group revenue, up from 9% in the same period
last year

·      New exclusive tier one partnerships launched in Audioboom's
Creator Network including; Lovers and Friends with Shan Boodram, Mea Culpa,
Straight Up with Stassi, and Undisclosed.

·      Further expansion of the Audioboom Studios production arm with
new titles launched in Q3 including Killers, Cults and Queens (which reached
number 1 on the UK True Crime podcast chart), Glittering a Turd and Superpower
State of Mind

·    In September 2022, Audioboom was announced by Edison Research as the
fourth largest podcast publisher in the US for the period July 2021 - June
2022, with only Spotify, SiriusXM and iHeartMedia above us

 

Stuart Last, CEO of Audioboom, commented: "Audioboom has continued to deliver
growth in the first nine months of 2022, increasing revenue by 44% and
increasing adjusted EBITDA by US$1.5 million over the same period last year,
while our cash position of US$8 million is the strongest the Company has ever
reported.

 

Showcase, our automated and very efficient advertising product, continues to
perform well and deliver strong value to advertisers, with annual revenue
growth of 115%, and a contribution of more than 14% to Group revenue.

 

Despite a challenging quarter due to a downturn in the advertising market
caused by deteriorating macro-economic conditions, Audioboom has continued in
its mission to deliver value for podcast creators and advertisers while
continuing to generate positive adjusted EBITDA and increasing cash reserves,
reinforcing the robustness we have developed within the Company.

 

Advertising demand began to rebound in the second half of Q3, and that trend
is continuing into Q4, with advertising bookings of more than US$73 million in
place for 2022 - 21% more than the entirety of last year's revenue. We are
confident of a positive end to the year".

 

 

1)     PwC June 2022 Global Entertainment and Media Outlook report states
that US podcast advertising revenue is expected to grow by 15% in 2022
relative to 2021

2)     Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, amortisation, share
based payments, non-cash foreign exchange movements and material one-off items

 

Enquiries

 Audioboom Group plc
 Stuart Last, Chief Executive Officer                                    Tel: +44(0)20 3714 4285

 Brad Clarke, Chief Financial Officer

 finnCap Ltd (Nominated Adviser and Broker)
 Jonny Franklin-Adams/Abigail Kelly/Milesh Hindocha (Corporate Finance)  Tel: +44(0)20 7220 0500

 Charlotte Sutcliffe/Harriet Ward (ECM)

About Audioboom

 

Audioboom is a global leader in podcasting - our shows are downloaded more
than 130 million times each month by 34 million unique listeners around the
world. Audioboom is ranked as the fifth largest podcast publisher by average
weekly users in the US by Triton Digital.

 

Audioboom's ad-tech and monetisation platform underpins a scalable content
business that provides commercial services for a premium network of 250 top
tier podcasts, with key partners including 'Casefile True Crime' (US), 'True
Crime Obsessed' (US), 'Dark History' (US), 'No Such Thing As A Fish' (UK), and
'The Cycling Podcast' (UK).

 

Audioboom Studios is home to a slate of content developed and produced by
Audioboom including 'Dark Air with Terry Carnation', 'F1: Beyond The Grid',
'RELAX!', 'Covert', 'It's Happening with Snooki & Joey', 'Mafia', 'Huddled
Masses' and 'What Makes A Killer'.

 

Audioboom operates internationally, with operations and global partnerships
across North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. The platform allows content
to be distributed via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pandora, Amazon Music, Deezer,
Google Podcasts, iHeartRadio, RadioPublic, Saavn, Stitcher, Facebook and
Twitter as well as a partner's own websites and mobile apps.

 

For more information, visit audioboom.com.

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