Many broadcast media companies are busily computing their first quarter 2022 financial results, with earnings calls on tap for early May. At Miami-based Spanish Broadcasting System (SBS), however, the company led by Raúl Alarcón Jr. that trades on the OTC Pink sheets has just released its fourth quarter and full-year 2021 financial results.
How did SBS do in the final three months of last year?
The radio division performed exceptionally well, while the Mega TV arm saw a much softer quarter in a non-political year.
For SBS, the radio dollars comprise the bulk of the company’s net revenue. On a consolidated basis, net revenue climbed 14% to $46 million, from $40.18 million. Radio revenue was up by 24%, to $42.15 million from $33.93 million.
Mega TV, again due to poor political comps, saw its net revenue dip by 39% to $3.84 million from $6.25 million. Another factor: Television station operating expenses that rose due to the absence of production tax credits in 2021.
Net income grew to $6.27 million ($0.77 per diluted share) from $3.84 million ($0.52).
On a full-year basis, SBS’s consolidated revenue climbed to $145.77 million from $121.94 million. But, full-year 2021 expenses were on the rise, too.
That wasn’t an obstacle for SBS, however, as consolidated year-over-year operating income climbed to $38.79 million from $13.81 million.
With market launches for SBS coming soon in both Orlando and Tampa, radio revenue from Q3 2022 and beyond will likely be even better, once the ad potential is fully realized against start-up expenses.
That’s likely to make Alarcón pleased. Speaking of SBS’s Q4 fiscal health, he said, “Our performance was driven primarily by our radio business, where revenues and Adjusted OIBDA increased 27% and 58%, respectively, and our operating margins of 45% continue to lead the radio sector. We entered 2022 with momentum in our business and a strategic vision that is delivering sustained growth. As the social, political and economic influence of the Latino market grows in the largest U.S. population centers and throughout the nation, so will SBS.”
