JSE-listed African Media Entertainment (AME) has reported an improved financial performance within the six months to end-September, pushed largely by the restoration in promoting income submit the Covid-19 pandemic.
The firm, which owns radio belongings and a portfolio of digital media companies, publishing and enterprise broadcasting belongings (together with Moneyweb), reported an enchancment in all the important thing financial performance indicators within the reporting interval.
Revenue rose by 11% to R128.4 million, from R116 million in September 2021.
AME chair Connie Molusi stated the income progress was primarily pushed by the restoration of promoting income submit the pandemic, however confused that the medium-term impression of the pandemic on the promoting sector remains to be related when trying on the interval beneath assessment.
The income progress resulted in a 22% enchancment in working revenue to R14.6 million from R12 million.
Net revenue earlier than tax elevated by 38% to R20.5 million from R14.9 million.
Headline earnings per share grew by 53% to 149.1 cents from 97.3 cents.
The continued restoration in performance within the present interval resulted in AME declaring an interim dividend of 100 cents per share, 25% larger than the 80 cents per share dividend declared for the corresponding interval final 12 months.
Outlook
AME CEO Dave Tiltmann is optimistic concerning the group’s prospects, including that promoting revenues are actually very near what the group achieved pre-Covid-19 in 2019.
Tiltmann expects the group’s performance for the total 12 months to be according to the earlier 12 months, whereas admitting that “there are obviously a lot of factors that are at play in South Africa”.
“We’ve had some really brilliant months through revenue and also one or two difficult ones, so at the moment we are taking it month by month. But we are extremely positive and our outlook is very optimistic,” he stated.
Tiltmann stated the uncertainty across the economic system, load shedding and the variety of different points South Africa is going through has created a little bit of doubt within the minds in advertisers, inflicting them to carry again on promoting expenditure.
This is creating fluctuations within the group’s income streams from quarter to quarter, he stated.
Tiltmann added that October this 12 months was a comparatively poor month throughout the board within the trade whereas November, which ties in to occasions like Black Friday, has seen a large enhance in income spend by the promoting trade.
“In general this year has been relatively positive. I’m pretty optimistic based on what I’ve seen so far in November. It’s a good start to the second six months of the year,” he stated.
Tiltmann stated AME clearly can’t change the financial surroundings, and the largest alternative the group sees is to spend time relooking on the Moneyweb providing that it has, notably on the income facet.
“It has not been meeting our expectations this financial year but we have got plans in place to grow that back. We are fully committed to do that and returning the business into a positive position,” he stated.
As a part of this initiative, Moneyweb will likely be internet hosting its second Better Investor Conference in the course of the third quarter of the 12 months – on Tuesday, 29 November – and the group is inspired by the rising curiosity from advertisers.
Tiltmann stated the entire group’s different merchandise and types have accomplished extraordinarily nicely within the six-month reporting interval, notably its radio merchandise.
“Our numbers for Algoa FM, which is based in the Eastern Cape, have been excellent and OFM based in central South Africa has also had a good six months set of results,” he stated.
Share repurchase
AME repurchased 199 621 of its shares in the course of the six-month reporting interval for R7.1 million and submitted a share repurchase programme to the JSE on 28 September.
That programme was accomplished after the reporting interval on 28 October and resulted within the repurchase of a complete 226 000 shares throughout this era for R7.7 million.
Tiltmann stated the group’s share repurchase scheme is clearly pushed by its perception that AME’s share value is undervalued.
“With the permission of the JSE, we have been embarking on that process and we will continue to look at that as we look forward,” he stated.
Shares in AME closed unchanged on Wednesday at R39.88 per share.