SiriusXM trims full-year revenue forecast, shares slide

Sirius XM Holdings

31/10/2024 12:06

Oct 31 (Reuters) - SiriusXM  SIRI.O  trimmed its
full-year revenue forecast on Thursday as it expected slower
growth in paying users for its content that includes the Howard
Stern show, sending the company's shares down 4.2% before the
bell.
    SiriusXM now expects full-year revenue of about $8.68
billion, lower than its previous forecast of about $8.75
billion.
    The company's self-pay subscribers increased by about 14,000
in the third quarter, compared to a decrease of 96,000 a year
ago. Analysts at Visible Alpha were estimating a decrease of
about 47,390 subscribers.
    Its third-quarter churn, which is the rate of customers who
stopped using its services, was 1.6% among self-pay users,
consistent with a year ago.
    Paid promotional subscribers declined by about 114,000,
which the company attributed to certain automakers transitioning
to unpaid or shorter-term paid promotional plans.
    SiriusXM's quarterly revenue of $2.17 billion came in
marginally below estimates of $2.19 billion, according to data
compiled by LSEG.
    Of that, advertising revenue of $450 million was also below
analysts' average expectation of $465.7 million.
    The company reported a quarterly net loss of $2.96 billion,
which included a non-cash impairment charge of about $3.36
billion related to the Liberty Media transaction.
    Last month, the company began trading under a new structure
after billionaire John Malone's Liberty Media completed a merger
of its business that holds a majority stake in the radio company
with the rest of SiriusXM.
    SiriusXM's free cash flow fell to $93 million in the quarter
from $291 million a year ago. It had earlier cut its full-year
free cash flow forecast by more than 16% to $1 billion.

 (Reporting by Rishi Kant in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio
D'Souza)
 ((Rishi.Kant@thomsonreuters.com;))