Friday, March 11, 2016

Cumulus Reports $546M Loss In 2015

Atlanta-based radio giant Cumulus Media Inc. (NASDAQ: CMLS) fell deep into the red in 2015 after sagging revenues as its debt was at $2.4 billion.

The company posted an annual net loss of $546.5 million, or a loss per share of $2.34, according to the Atlanta Business Journal.

Revenue for the year was down 7.5 percent to $94.7 million. This included decreases of $58.3 million, $16 million, $15.9 million and $4.5 million in broadcast advertising, digital advertising, political advertising and license fees and other revenue, respectively.

“First, national spot advertising sales are heavily dependent on ratings across our stations,” the company said. “Declining ratings in certain key markets resulted in a significant decrease in national spot revenue period over period. Second, our largest competitor has strategically shifted its focus towards national advertising clients, resulting in lower market share and revenues for us and the remainder of the industry. Third, our sales execution in 2015 compared to 2014 was less successful partially due to national advertisers seeking more digital advertising components than we are currently able to fulfill.”

The company also said in its annual report Thursday its debt was at $2.4 billion.

Q4 2015:


“Lower than expected financial performance and the amount of our outstanding debt may make it more difficult to comply with the covenants in our debt instruments, including the financial covenant in our Credit Agreement (defined below), which could cause a default or an event of default under such debt instruments and a related acceleration of our indebtedness and, in some instances, the foreclosure on some or all of our assets, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations,” it said in the report.

Mary Berner
The company's stock closed the day at 41 cents a share.

Cumulus CEO Mary Berner struck an optimistic note:

“Our continued underperformance in the fourth quarter underscores the amount of work required to address the significant challenges that we face,” she said. “However, by quickly establishing and beginning to implement our operational turnaround initiatives -- enhancing our operational blocking and tackling, instituting a strong and positive culture, and driving improved ratings -- we believe that, with time, we can stabilize the business and ultimately provide a foundation for growth.”

Cumulus reaches markets with 245 million people through 454 radio stations in 90 U.S. media markets (including eight of the top 10) and has more than 8,200 broadcast radio stations affiliated with its Westwood One network and numerous digital channels.

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