Profits down 27pc at Seven, but Matildas delivering ‘halo effect’
A 12 per cent collapse in the television advertising market in the first six months of 2023 capped off a challenging year for Seven West Media, which posted a 27 per cent fall in profits and slight decline in revenue.
The Kerry Stokes-controlled business, which owns the Seven Network and The West Australian, said it would not pay a dividend again this year – it last paid one in 2018 – citing ongoing tough market conditions.
Despite a longer, 53-week financial year, Seven West posted revenue of $1.49 billion, down 3.3 per cent on last year. Earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation were $279.7 million, down 18.2 per cent, and profit after tax was $146.3 million, down 27 per cent. The result was slightly below market forecasts.
Seven West Media chief executive James Warburton said the results were “solid”. James Alcock
Seven West’s share price was trading 4.5 per cent down at 38¢ in the first hours of trade on Wednesday, taking its market cap just below $600 million.
Seven West chief executive James Warburton said the results were “solid” in the face of a 7.9 per cent decline in the TV market over the year. “The market decline accelerated during the second half, driven by the macroeconomic environment,” he said.
That environment prompted the Seven West board to hold its dividend. “When we turn the dividend on, we want to be in a position where it stays on,” Mr Warburton said.
Seven Network’s revenue was $1.32 billion, down 4 per cent, while The West Australian newspaper’s revenue was $171 million, up 1 per cent.
Seven took a 38.5 per cent share of the revenue available in the TV market last financial year, which Morgan Stanley estimates is worth $34 million per percentage point.
As the free-to-air
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