Like many radio operators, Saga benefitted in Q2 2012 from a one-time music licensing credit that was not repeated this time around. As a result, despite improved performance on the net operating revenue front, the company reported higher expenses and lower profits.
Net operating revenue grew 2.6% to $23.5M, but without the $851K licensing credit, expenses grew 7%. That eventually led to an 8% dip in operating income to $8.4M, down from $9.1M, and net income dipped 6.4% to $4.8M.
Saga said that its operating income for the quarter would have been 1.5% to the good if the licensing credit is excluded from the calculation.
Wells Fargo analyst Marci Ryvicker highlighted some other numbers, noting a 3% gain in revenue to $33.8M, including a 1% gain in radio revenue to $28.7M and a 14.5% bulge on the television side to $5.2M. She said radio came home about as expected, although expenses were higher than projections, and added that television did considerably better than expected.
