LBG Media posts growth despite advertising market downturn

Youth-focused digital publisher LBG Media reported a 10% growth in total group revenue in its interim results on Tuesday, to £27.2m.

The AIM-traded firm, which owns brands such as LADbible, said that was consistent with the usual seasonal split between the first and second halves of the year.

Direct revenues jumped 9% year-on-year to £11.4m for the six months ended 30 June, up from £10.6m in the first half of 2022.

That growth was attributed to the company's continued success in executing campaigns for global brands.

The group saw a 13% rise in its indirect revenue to £15.3m, while it recorded an 87% year-on-year increase in content views, building on 38% growth from the prior year and enabling it to capitalise on the market's trend towards short-form content.

LBG Media reported an 84% increase in adjusted EBITDA to £3m, mirroring its increased revenue and strict cost management strategy.

The company reported a pre-tax loss of £1.2m, showing a 39% improvement compared to last year's loss of £1.9m.

Cash and equivalents at the end of the period totalled £32.7m, up from £28.6m a year earlier.

That included a net cash increment of £3.4m after accounting for the £0.5m spent on acquiring Lessons Learned in Life (LLIL) in March.

On the operational front, LBG Media said its global audience experienced a significant increase with the addition of 95 million people, bringing the total count to over 410 million.

The inclusion of LLIL, with its 19.6 million followers as of 30 June, contributed to the surge.

It said the acquisition of LLIL, a previously under-monetised US Facebook page, was completed in March, with the page expected to achieve payback within the first year of ownership.

The group saw a commendable increase in direct revenue brief conversion, boasting a rate of 29%, up significantly from the previous year's 18%.

“We have made good financial and operational progress throughout the first half of 2023,” said chief executive officer Solly Solomou.

“The significant increase in content views demonstrates our effective ongoing engagement with the hard-to-reach 18 to 34-year-old demographic, which remains a highly attractive proposition for our partner brands and platforms and will continue to drive the business forward.

“Our growth continued to outperform the wider digital advertising market as we operate within the fastest growing segments, giving us confidence as we look forward.”

In addition, Solomou said the company’s strategic progress in the half was encouraging.

“We continued to execute on our plans to broaden geographically, with good early progress in our recently established US operations, to acquire businesses, plugging in under-monetised brands onto our platform, and to broaden our capabilities, with our agile business model ensuring we can reach the widest possible audience.

“We have started the second half with positive momentum, and I am excited by the opportunities that lie ahead.”

At 0934 BST, shares in LBG Media were up 0.49% at 69.34p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.