Audioboom delivers 'solid perfomance' in Q1

Podcast group Audioboom said on Wednesday that first-quarter revenues were in line with expectations thanks to a "solid performance" that has it "positioned for further growth".

Audioboom stated quarterly revenues were lower year-on-year at $15.4m, down from $19.5m a year earlier, while adjusted underlying earnings had slumped from $900,000 in 2022 to just $200,000 in 2023.

Average global monthly downloads were up 13% at 125.2m, while average monthly brand advertiser count was 74% higher at 6,498. Average global revenue per 1,000 downloads, on the other hand, was down from $48.50 to $41.0.

Chief executive Stuart Last said: "Our operational enhancements ensure that we are primed to take full advantage of future improvements in the ad market - we have more inventory to sell than ever before and will do so at a more favourable revenue share. The recent restructuring of our sales operation is enabling us to build a new customer base with larger, more mature brands and agencies - incremental opportunity that will allow us to optimise our monetisation platform.

"We recognise the near-term challenging ad market conditions, but in the medium to long-term we are confident that brands continue to trust podcasting as a key part of their marketing strategy - highlighted by the $52.0m of advertising revenue that we currently have booked for 2023. We continue to expect to deliver year-on-year growth for the full year as well as continuing to outperform the wider market, and we see strong signs that the ad market is returning."

As of 1345 BST, Audioboom shares were up 4.05% at 355.0p.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com