MediaCo Holding Inc., the publicly traded owner of Estrella Media and longtime New York audio brands WBLS and WQHT “HOT 97,” quietly released its second quarter earnings results following Friday’s closing bell for U.S. financial markets.
The prognosis for the company led by CEO Albert Rodriguez? Despite a 9% net revenue climb, the company’s net loss widened by 17% as the adjusted EBITDA shrank.
In Q2, net revenue came in at $33.97 million, up from $31.25 million.
Alas, adjusted EBITDA declined to $942,000 from $1.51 million, as MediaCo net loss grew to $8.61 million, from $7.39 million.
In prepared comments, Rodriguez elected to focus on the net revenue gain, commenting on how it outpaced “much of the industry,” as MediaCo continues “to build on our leadership position serving multicultural audiences.”
Thank the digital revenue for offsetting greater challenges for the company. Rodriguez cited MediaCo’s “cross-platform strategy” as central to the Q2 results: 47% of advertising revenue was generated through digital channels during the quarter, “once again ranking us among the top performers in our industry,” he said. “Combined with a strong sales pipeline, culturally authentic and high-impact programming, and an expanding distribution footprint across television, radio, digital, and FAST platforms, we are growing our audience reach and strengthening our value to advertisers.”
Furthermore, as MediaCo continues to monetize the strategic investments it has made in its assets and expands its revenue sources, “we remain focused on streamlining operations and building efficiency across the business. At the same time, we implemented a companywide cost and expense reduction initiative to sharpen our operating discipline and drive improved EBITDA and margins. We believe the future is very bright as we position serving multicultural audiences.”
That future is said to be minus Maire Mason, who RBR+TVBR has learned has exited as VP/GM of Local MediaCo Markets after joining the company in late January from Spanish Broadcasting System (SBS), where many MediaCo executives including Rodriguez previously worked.
There is also widespread market chatter of cash flow challenges across the third quarter at MediaCo, which sees a majority of its finances under the direction of Standard General principal Soo Kim.
