TIDMLBG
RNS Number : 9851M
LBG Media PLC
20 September 2023
20 September 2023
LBG Media plc
("LBG Media", the "Company" or "Group")
Results for the half year ended 30 June 2023
Good progress across our strategic pillars, on track to meet
full year expectations
LBG Media plc, the UK-based multi-brand, multi-channel digital
youth publisher, is pleased to report its results for the half year
ended 30 June 2023 ("HY23" or "the period"). During the period, the
Group delivered a strong performance, growing its global audience
and content views, and is on track to meet full year market
expectations.
Financial Highlights
HY23 HY22 Change
(GBPm) (GBPm) %
Revenue
* Direct 11.4 10.6 9%
* Indirect 15.3 13.6 13%
* Other 0.5 0.6 (28%)
--------------------------- --------- --------- --------
Total Group Revenue 27.2 24.8 10%
Adjusted EBITDA(1) 3.0 1.6 84%
Adjusted EBITDA margin(1) 11% 7% +4% pts
Loss before tax (1.2) (1.9) 39%
Cash and cash equivalents 32.7 28.6 15%
-- Total Group Revenue of GBP27.2m (HY22: GBP24.8m) up 10% and
in line with the typical seasonal split between H1 and H2, and
which we have experienced historically.
o Direct revenues increased by 9% to GBP11.4m (HY22: GBP10.6m)
driven by the Group's growing reputation for successful campaigns
with global brands. Visibility of booking levels for the second
half of the year has also improved compared to this time last
year.
o Indirect revenue increased by 13% to GBP15.3m (HY22:
GBP13.6m). Year-on-year content views increased by 87%, on the back
of strong growth of 38% in the prior year, enabling the Group to
greater capitalise on the market shift to short-form content that
occurred in the second half of last year.
-- Adjusted EBITDA(1) of GBP3.0m (HY22: GBP1.6m), up 84%,
reflective of the stronger revenue performance of the Group and
disciplined cost management. Loss before tax was GBP1.2m (HY22:
loss of GBP1.9m) representing a 39% improvement in comparison to
the prior year.
-- Cash and cash equivalents at the period-end amounted to
GBP32.7m (FY22: GBP29.3m, HY22: GBP28.6m), reflecting a net
increase in cash of GBP3.4m, after GBP0.5m of consideration paid in
March for the acquisition of Lessons Learned in Life ('LLIL').
Operational Highlights
-- Global audience grew by 95m people (including the LLIL
acquisition with 19.6m followers as at 30 June 2023) to over 410m
(HY22: 315m), with 67.1bn content views in the period, up 87% on
the prior period.
-- In March 2023, the Group completed the acquisition of LLIL -
an under-monetised US Facebook page that is on track to achieve
payback within its first year.
-- Continued to support socially responsible campaigns with a
cross-business, post-earthquake Turkey / Syria appeal fund, working
with the 'If U Care, Share' charity and our recent partnership with
the London Mayor's office supporting the 'Have A Word'
campaign.
-- Achieved direct revenue brief conversion of 29%; a
significant uplift from 18% conversion in HY22.
CEO, Solly Solomou commented:
"We have made good financial and operational progress throughout
the first half of 2023. 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, our
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 H2 with positive momentum and I am excited by
the opportunities that lie ahead."
Outlook
The Board believes that the Group's highly differentiated
offering and strategic programme will continue to fuel our growth.
Normal seasonality in advertising revenue combined with the
relatively even split of costs means that profitability is
significantly weighted towards the second half of the year, as has
been the case in prior years. Notwithstanding the general
challenges in the overall market, our momentum on audience and
content growth, as well as client brief conversion rate, has
continued into H2 and will help us capitalise on that seasonality.
We can confirm the outlook for the full year remains in line with
market expectations(2) .
Notes:
(1) Adjusted EBITDA - earnings before interest, tax,
depreciation, and amortisation adjusted for share based payments
(including employers NIC as appropriate) and adjusting items.
Adjusted EBITDA margin is Adjusted EBITDA divided by Group Revenue
represented as a percentage.
(2) External market consensus for the year ending 31 December
2023 is currently: Revenue of GBP69.3m and Adjusted EBITDA of
GBP19.3m.
Analyst Presentation
LBG Media plc will be hosting an analyst presentation on 20
September 2023 following the release of these results for the half
year ended 30 June 2023. Attendance is by invitation only. Slides
accompanying the analyst presentation, along with a recording, will
be available on the LBG Media plc website following the event.
For further information please contact:
LBG Media plc investors@ladbiblegroup.com
Solly Solomou, Co-founder & CEO
Richard Jarvis, CFO
Mark Mochalski, Investor Relations
Fiona O'Nolan, Investor Relations
Zeus Capital Limited Tel: +44 (0) 161 831 1512
(Nominated Adviser & Broker) www.zeuscapital.co.uk
Dan Bate / Nick Cowles (Investment Banking)
Benjamin Robertson (Equity Capital Markets)
Peel Hunt LLP (Joint Broker) Tel: +44 (0) 207 418 8990
Neil Patel www.peelhunt.com
Paul Gillam
Richard Chambers
Media enquiries Tel: +44 (0) 20 7466 5000
Buchanan www.buchanancom ms.co.uk
Richard Oldworth / Chris Lane / Toto Berger / Jack Devoy
Notes to editors
LBG Media is a multi-brand, multi-channel digital youth
publisher and is a leading disrupter in the digital media and
social publishing sectors. The Group produces and distributes
digital content across a range of mediums including video,
editorial, image, audio, and experience (virtual and augmented
reality). Since its inception in 2012, the Group has curated a
diverse collection of specialist brands using social media
platforms (primarily Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter,
YouTube and TikTok) and has built multiple websites to reach new
audiences and drive engagement. Each brand is dedicated to a
distinct popular interest point (e.g. sport, gaming etc.), which is
designed to achieve broader engagement, increase relevance and
ultimately build a loyal community of followers.
The Group operates two core routes to market: Direct revenue,
which is principally generated from the provision of content
marketing services to corporates, brand owners, marketing agencies
and other entities such as government bodies and where the
relationship with the client is held directly by LBG Media; and
Indirect revenue, which is generated via a third-party, such as a
social media platform or via a programmatic advertising exchange /
online marketplace, which holds the relationship with the brand
owner or agency.
BUSINESS REVIEW
Overview
In the period ended 30 June 2023, LBG Media delivered a strong
performance, with revenue growth of 10% to GBP27.2m (HY22:
GBP24.8m), while Adjusted EBITDA increased by 84% to GBP3.0m (HY22:
GBP1.6m). The Group remains cash generative with a healthy cash
position of GBP32.7m (FY22: GBP29.3m, HY22: GBP28.6m).
LBG Media remains focused on delivering relevant and exciting
content to the predominantly youth audience , with the volume of
views continuing to grow in the first half of the year, by 87%
versus HY22, driving growth in market share . The growth in views
came as the Group used its insights and first-mover advantage to
capitalise on the market shift to short-form content that occurred
in the second half of last year.
LBG Media operates within some of the fastest growing segments
of the digital media market, including social video and mobile.
With the global digital advertising revenue forecast to grow at
7.6% this year(1) , LBG Media is once again outgrowing the digital
market.
Revenue
Revenue is generated through our two core revenue channels,
Direct and Indirect. Despite being distinct channels, our
capabilities and opportunities to monetise our audience
relationship can be used across both.
Direct revenue is generated from the provision of content
marketing services to brand owners, marketing agencies and other
entities such as government bodies, and has increased by 9% in HY23
to GBP11.4m (HY22: GBP10.6m). This was driven by strong momentum
with our branded clients such as Vodafone, McDonalds, Google and
Disney. Direct revenue also includes some revenue from direct
display advertising, where brand owners' pay for advertising space
on our websites for an agreed fee.
Indirect revenue is received via third party social media
platforms (e.g. Facebook, Snapchat, YouTube) or via programmatic
partners, which hold the relationship with the brand owner, or
agency. In HY23 indirect revenue increased by 13% to GBP15.3m
(HY22: GBP13.6m), driven by the market shift to short-form video
seen in the second half of 2022. Facebook, YouTube and Snapchat are
already monetised platforms, while TikTok and Instagram are at
earlier stages of monetisation.
Audience, followers & engagement
LBG Media's expert content creators produce engaging and
relevant content for our audience. The content is then distributed
through various platforms and websites and in-depth analysis is
then performed on interactions and audience engagement in real
time. The learnings from this then drive the refinement of content
to make it even more engaging for the audience, in a cycle of
continuous improvement.
In the first half of 2023, our global audience grew to 410m,
which is a 33% growth rate year-on-year. In the UK alone, the Group
reaches almost two thirds of 18 to 34-year-olds. Our content was
viewed over 67.1bn times, up 87% compared to HY22 and this was well
diversified across our brand portfolio.
Brand portfolio
LBG Media's 14 core brands serve both niche and mainstream
audiences. Each of the brands are based around specific interest
points such as sports, gaming, music, technology, and travel. The
portfolio has been enhanced over recent years, with the well
targeted acquisitions of Go Animals in 2022 (since rebranded as
Furry Tails) and LLIL in 2023.
Strategic Progress
In line with the Group's growth strategy, in March 2023, LBG
Media acquired the social media accounts, social media content,
domain names, website, intellectual property licenses, third party
rights and records of LLIL for a consideration of GBP0.5m. This was
an under-monetised asset that is on track to achieve payback within
its first year.
Our presence in the US continues to expand following the launch
of our US operations last year. We are proud to have a
multi-platform global audience, and international represents 17% of
Group revenue.
We saw another significant increase in followers on TikTok, up
66% year-on-year, where we are the largest media publisher.
Growth strategy
LBG Media has a proven track record of delivering strong growth,
both organically and via acquisitions. Our strategy for growth can
be summarized by the three core pillars below:
1) Geographies: LBG Media currently has a physical presence in
five territories - the UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, and
United States. We aim to grow these communities by continuing to
create and publish relevant digital content, further building brand
awareness levels and increasing follower numbers. The majority of
LBG Media's Direct revenue is currently generated in the UK,
however, active audiences in other geographies provide a foundation
for future growth across both the Indirect and Direct revenue
streams and help to de-risk revenue through diversification.
2)
1 - Source: GroupM, This Year Next Year Report, December 2022
Acquisitions: It can be significantly more time and cost
efficient to access markets through selective acquisitions compared
to building a new brand from scratch if an established digital
media brand with a physical presence, existing audiences and
understanding of the local market is already present. We continue
to actively consider and assess acquisition opportunities that have
diversification potential, both geographically and in terms of
genre of content, as we look to increase our audience.
3) Capabilities : Our agile model allows us to actively
replicate content across any new platforms, ensuring it reaches the
widest possible audience and we intend to continue to expand our
capabilities to produce innovative content, as well as using data
and new technologies, including AI, to further enhance our service
offering. Increasing audience monetisation is key to driving LBG
Media's growth. Currently only Facebook, Snapchat and YouTube
facilitate such monetisation of users through adverts, but we
believe that in time these capabilities will be introduced across
all social media platforms as they mature, providing significant
upside opportunities for us.
Events & Awards
LBG Media have proactively reached out to current and potential
direct revenue clients by hosting events within the first six
months of the year. Once again, our headline event was at Heckfield
Place, which gave brands and agencies the chance to learn more
about our commercial capabilities. Over the two-day event, we had a
series of tailored presentations shining a light on Gen Z
behaviours, the new era of social broadcast, the creator economy
and more. Sessions were then interspersed with external speakers
such as ex-international footballer Jill Scott and comedian Mo
Gilligan. The event had exceptional feedback with guests saying
they now had a much deeper understanding of our commercial
capabilities.
During the first half of the year, we were proud to have been
shortlisted for 20 awards recognising the quality of work we
produce within the industry. Our Tango Berry Peachy campaign won in
the Campaign Media Awards for 'Best Social Strategy' and also in
the Digiday Content Marketing Awards in the 'Best Product Launch'
category. Our Budweiser campaign for the 2022 World Cup also took
the winning spot at the Campaign Media Awards in the 'Branded
Content' category.
ESG
As a leading social youth publisher, LBG Media has a powerful
global platform to pursue socially responsible agendas and we have
run several social awareness campaigns recently to help raise
interest of key social issues.
Within the first half of the year, we have actively supported
those impacted by the earthquake in Turkey and Syria by activating
a cross-business fundraising emergency appeal generating more than
GBP50k in just over a week. We also worked with the 'If U Care,
Share' charity to encourage our audience to talk about how they are
feeling.
More recently, we kickstarted a partnership with the London
Mayor's office to combat sexism amongst peer groups supporting the
'Have A Word' campaign. We used LADnation to conduct research into
our engaged youth audience's views and experience of sexual
harassment, before creating original content which we amplified
across our platforms.
FINANCIAL REVIEW
HY23 HY22 Change
GBPm GBPm %
Revenue 27.2 24.8 10%
Net operating expenses (28.5) (26.6) (7%)
--------------------------------- ------ ------ -------
Operating loss (1.3) (1.8) 31%
--------------------------------- ------ ------ -------
Adjusted EBITDA(1) 3.0 1.6 84%
Adjusted EBITDA(1) % 11% 7% +4% pts
Depreciation (0.9) (0.7) (35%)
Amortisation (0.5) (0.4) (39%)
Share based payments (2.2) (2.4) 10%
Adjusting items (0.7) - -
--------------------------------- ------ ------ -------
Operating loss (1.3) (1.8) 31%
--------------------------------- ------ ------ -------
Net finance costs (0.0) (0.1) 95%
Share of joint ventures 0.1 (0.0) 283%
Loss before taxation (1.2) (1.9) 39%
--------------------------------- ------ ------ -------
Corporation tax credit/(expense) (0.6) 0.1 (535%)
Loss for the period (1.7) (1.8) 4%
--------------------------------- ------ ------ -------
Cash and cash equivalents 32.7 28.6 15%
Notes:
(1) Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and
amortisation adjusted for share based payments (including employers
NIC as appropriate) and adjusting items. Adjusted EBITDA % is
Adjusted EBITDA divided by Group Revenue represented as a
percentage.
FINANCIAL REVIEW (continued)
Key performance indicators ("KPIs")
The board monitors progress of the Group by reference to the
following KPIs:
HY23 HY22 Change
GBPm GBPm GBPm %
Financial
Revenue 27.2 24.8 2.4 10%
Adjusted EBITDA 3.0 1.6 1.4 84%
Adjusted EBITDA as a % of revenue 11% 7% +4% pts
---------------------------------- ----- -----
Loss before tax (1.2) (1.9) 0.7 39%
---------------------------------- ----- ----- ---- ------
Non-Financial
Global audience (m)* 410 315 95 33 %
Content views (bn)** 67.1 35.8 31.3 87%
Average number of employees (no.) 427 473 (46) (10%)
* Global audience includes social followers, in addition to
average monthly website users for the six months to June.
** Content views is total views of content across all social
platforms and websites.
The definition of what constitutes a view can vary across the
social platforms.
Revenue
HY23 HY22 Change
GBPm GBPm %
Direct 11.4 10.6 9%
Indirect 15.3 13.6 13%
Other 0.5 0.6 (28%)
Total Group Revenue 27.2 24.8 10%
Total Group Revenue of GBP27.2m (HY22: GBP24.8m), representing
growth of 10% and in line with the seasonality we anticipate
between H1 and H2.
Direct revenues increased by 9% to GBP11.4m (HY22: GBP10.6m)
driven by the Group's growing reputation for successful campaigns
with global brands including Vodafone, Google and Disney.
Visibility of booking levels for the second half of the year has
also improved compared to this time last year.
Indirect revenue increased by 13% to GBP15.3m (HY22: GBP13.6m).
Year on year content views increased by 87%, enabling the Group to
greater capitalise on the market shift to short-form content that
occurred in the second half of last year.
Net operating expenses
Net operating expenses increased by 7% to GBP28.5m (HY22:
GBP26.6m).
Production and media costs increased by GBP0.1m to GBP5.0m
(HY22: GBP4.9m), with the increase driven by more branded content
(Direct) in the period.
Establishment costs, the majority of which is technology costs,
increased by GBP0.6m to GBP3.1m (HY22: GBP2.5m), up 22% mainly due
to increased software subscriptions to support our content
production and continued investment to support future growth in
Direct revenue.
Staff costs reduced by GBP0.3m to GBP15.8m (HY22: GBP16.1m).
This reduction is mainly a result of the restructuring exercise
undertaken in the second half of 2022, offset by inflationary pay
rises and our continued investment in our international
businesses.
Travel and expenses decreased by GBP0.3m to GBP0.7m (HY22:
GBP1.0m). The prior half year included the costs of celebrating our
10-year anniversary.
Depreciation of GBP0.9m (HY22: GBP0.7m) was up 35%, mainly
driven by a new property lease in Australia.
Net operating expenses (continued)
Amortisation of GBP0.5m (HY22: GBP0.4m) up 39%, the increase
mainly being due the acquisition of LLIL in March 2023 in addition
to the full six-month period of amortisation of Go Animals (Furry
Tails) social media pages which were acquired in May 2022.
Share based payment costs were GBP2.2m (HY22: GBP2.4m). The
share based payments charge includes GBP0.2m (HY22: GBP0.4m) of
employers NIC on certain share options.
Adjusting items were GBP0.7m (HY22: GBPnil). Adjusting items
includes costs associated with team reorganisation, a one-off
cost-of-living payment and acquisition related fees. More
information on these items can be found in note 4.
Adjusted EBITDA
Adjusted EBITDA was GBP3.0m (HY22: GBP1.6m) representing an 84%
increase in comparison to the prior half year and in line with the
revenue seasonality we anticipate between H1 and H2. Adjusted
EBITDA margin increased to 11% (HY22: 7%).
Normal seasonality in advertising revenue combined with the
relatively even split of costs means that profitability is
significantly weighted towards the second half of the year.
Adjusted EBITDA is used for internal performance analysis to
assess the execution of our strategies. Management believe that
this adjusted measure is an appropriate metric to understand the
underlying performance of the Group. More information on
Alternative Performance Measures (APMs) can be found on page
18.
Net finance costs
Net finance costs of GBP0.0m (HY22: GBP0.1m) were incurred
during the year.
Share of JV
Share in joint ventures was GBP0.1m profit (HY22: GBP0.0m loss)
representing our percentage share in the results of Pubity Group
Ltd.
Loss before tax
Loss before tax was GBP1.2m (HY22: GBP1.9m) representing a 39%
improvement in comparison to the prior year.
Taxation
The tax charge for the period was GBP0.6m (HY22: GBP0.1m
credit).
Balance sheet
Goodwill and other intangible assets increased by GBP0.3m to
GBP15.7m (FY22: GBP15.4m) reflecting additions of the bolt-on
acquisition of LLIL for GBP0.5m and software additions of GBP0.3m,
offset by amortisation of GBP0.5m.
Property plant and equipment (PPE) decreased by GBP0.5m to
GBP3.2m (FY22: GBP3.7m). Within the period we acquired a new
property lease accounting for GBP0.4m, offset by depreciation of
GBP0.9m.
Other receivables reduced to GBP0.1m (FY22: GBP0.6m). Other
receivables reflect long term lease deposits in relation to our
offices. During HY23, we received a significant repayment of
GBP0.5m for the London lease deposit.
Trade and other receivables reduced by GBP0.9m to GBP19.5m
(FY22: GBP20.4m) mainly due to effective cash collection within the
period including a reduction in accrued income of GBP3.9m.
Trade and other payables increased by GBP1.8m to GBP6.1m (FY22:
GBP4.3m) mainly driven by timing differences of our working capital
movements.
Cash flow and cash position
Cash and cash equivalents at the period end amounted to GBP32.7m
(FY22: GBP29.3m, HY22: GBP28.6m).
The increase in cash of GBP3.4m in comparison to the year-end
includes net cash generated from operating activates of GBP5.3m,
and outflows relating to investing and financing activities of
GBP1.8m . More information on the cash flow can be found on page
11.
Solly Solomou Richard Jarvis
Chief Executive Officer Chief Financial Officer
UNAUDITED INTERIM FINANCIAL INFORMATION - LBG MEDIA PLC
UNAUDITED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME
Note Period ended Period ended
30 June 30 June 2022
2023 GBP'000 GBP'000
(unaudited) (unaudited)
----------------------------------------- ----- -------------- --------------
Revenue 3 27,247 24,763
Net operating expenses (28,499) (26,577)
----------------------------------------- ----- -------------- --------------
Operating loss (1,252) (1,814)
Analysed as:
Adjusted EBITDA(1) 3,013 1,637
Depreciation (911) (677)
Amortisation 6 (507) (366)
Share based payment charge (2,178) (2,408)
Adjusting items 4 (669) -
----------------------------------------- ----- -------------- --------------
Group operating loss (1,252) (1,814)
----------------------------------------- ----- -------------- --------------
Finance income - 5
Finance costs (3) (62)
----------------------------------------- ----- -------------- --------------
Net finance costs (3) (57)
Share of post-tax (loss)/profit of
equity accounted joint venture 84 (46)
Loss before taxation (1,171) (1,917)
Income tax 5 (553) 127
----------------------------------------- ----- -------------- --------------
Loss for the period attributable
to equity holders of the company (1,724) (1,790)
----------------------------------------- ----- -------------- --------------
Currency translation differences (78) -
(net of tax)
Loss and total comprehensive income
for the financial year attributable
to equity holders of the company (1,802) (1,790)
Basic (loss)/earnings per share (pence) 7 (0.8) (0.9)
Diluted (loss)/earnings per share
(pence) 7 (0.8) (0.9)
----------------------------------------- ----- -------------- --------------
(1) Adjusted EBITDA, which is defined as profit before net
finance costs, tax, depreciation, amortisation, share based payment
charge and adjusting items is a non-GAAP metric used by management
and is not an IFRS disclosure.
All results derive from continuing operations.
UNAUDITED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION
Note As at 30 As at 30 As at 31
June 2023 June 2022 December
GBP'000 GBP'000 2022 GBP'000
(unaudited) (unaudited) (audited)
---------------------------------- ----- ------------ ------------ --------------
Assets
Non-current assets
Goodwill and other intangible
assets 6 15,707 15,374 15,436
Property, plant and equipment 3,203 4,038 3,670
Investments in equity-accounted
joint ventures 443 314 359
Other receivables 124 574 592
Deferred tax asset 651 - 260
Total non-current assets 20,128 20,300 20,317
---------------------------------- ----- ------------ ------------ --------------
Current assets
Trade and other receivables 19,500 14,733 20,370
Current tax asset - 434 378
Cash and cash equivalents 32,708 28,554 29,268
Total current assets 52,208 43,721 50,016
---------------------------------- ----- ------------ ------------ --------------
Total assets 72,336 64,021 70,333
---------------------------------- ----- ------------ ------------ --------------
Equity
Called up share capital 207 206 206
Share premium reserve 28,993 28,993 28,993
Accumulated exchange differences (49) - 29
Retained earnings 32,453 23,317 31,998
Total equity 61,604 52,516 61,226
---------------------------------- ----- ------------ ------------ --------------
Liabilities
Non-current liabilities
Lease liability 8 1,428 2,474 1,960
Provisions 502 214 540
Deferred tax liability 445 618 394
Total non-current liabilities 2,375 3,306 2,894
---------------------------------- ----- ------------ ------------ --------------
Current liabilities
Lease liability 8 1,334 1,364 1,282
Trade and other payables 6,077 6,835 4,295
Current tax liabilities 946 - 636
---------------------------------- ----- ------------ ------------ --------------
Total current liabilities 8,357 8,199 6,213
---------------------------------- ----- ------------ ------------ --------------
Total liabilities 10,732 11,505 9,107
---------------------------------- ----- ------------ ------------ --------------
Total equity and liabilities 72,336 64,021 70,333
---------------------------------- ----- ------------ ------------ --------------
UNAUDITED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN EQUITY
Share capital Share premium Accumulated exchange Retained earnings Total equity
differences
GBP'000 GBP'000 GBP'000 GBP'000 GBP'000
-------------------------
As at 1 January 2022 206 28,993 - 23,082 52,281
Loss for the financial
period - - - (1,790) (1,790)
------------------------- -------------- -------------- ------------------------ ------------------ -------------
Total comprehensive
income for the period - - - (1,790) (1,790)
Share based payments - - - 2,025 2,025
Deferred tax on share - - - - -
options
------------------------- -------------- -------------- ------------------------ ------------------ -------------
Total transactions with
owners, recognised
directly in equity - - - 2,025 2,025
------------------------- -------------- -------------- ------------------------ ------------------ -------------
As at 30 June 2022
(unaudited) 206 28,993 - 23,317 52,516
Profit for the financial
period - - - 7,137 7,137
Currency translation
differences (net of
tax) - - 29 - 29
------------------------- -------------- -------------- ------------------------ ------------------ -------------
Total comprehensive
income for the period - - 29 7,137 7,166
Share based payments - - - 1,527 1,527
Deferred tax on share
options - - - 17 17
------------------------- -------------- -------------- ------------------------ ------------------ -------------
Total transactions with
owners, recognised
directly in equity 206 28,993 - 1,544 30,743
------------------------- -------------- -------------- ------------------------ ------------------ -------------
As at 31 December 2022
and 1 January 2023
(audited) 206 28,993 29 31,998 61,226
Loss for the financial
period - - - (1,724) (1,724)
Currency translation
differences (net of
tax) - - (78) - (78)
------------------------- -------------- -------------- ------------------------ ------------------ -------------
Total comprehensive loss
for the period - - (78) (1,724) (1,802)
Share based payments - - - 2,178 2,178
Deferred tax on share
options - - - 1 1
Share issue 1 - - - 1
-------------------------
Total transactions with
owners, recognised
directly in equity 1 - - 2,179 2,180
------------------------- -------------- -------------- ------------------------ ------------------ -------------
As at 30 June 2023
(unaudited) 207 28,993 (49) 32,453 61,604
------------------------- -------------- -------------- ------------------------ ------------------ -------------
UNAUDITED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS
6 months to 30 June 2023 6 months to 30 June 2022 Year ended 31 December 2022
GBP'000 GBP'000 GBP'000
(unaudited) (unaudited) (audited)
---------------------------------- ------------------------- ------------------------- ----------------------------
Cash flows from operating
activities
Cash generated/(used) from
operations 5,48 6 (2,900) 1,295
Tax paid (192) (803) (2,693)
---------------------------------- ------------------------- ------------------------- ----------------------------
Net cash generated/(used) from
operating activities 5,294 (3,703) (1,398)
---------------------------------- ------------------------- ------------------------- ----------------------------
Cash flows from investing
activities
Purchase of intangible assets (798) (1,147) (1,675)
Purchase of property, plant and
equipment (191) (315) (544)
Net cash generated/(used) in
investing activities (989) (1,462) (2,219)
---------------------------------- ------------------------- ------------------------- ----------------------------
Cash flows from financing
activities
Lease payments (750) (584) (1,227)
Lease deposits paid - - (105)
Interest paid (50) (60) (121)
Net cash generated/(used) in
financing activities (800) (644) (1,453)
---------------------------------- ------------------------- ------------------------- ----------------------------
Net increase/(decrease) in cash
and cash equivalents 3,505 (5,809) (5,070)
---------------------------------- ------------------------- ------------------------- ----------------------------
Cash and cash equivalents at the
beginning of the period 29,268 34,338 34,338
---------------------------------- ------------------------- ------------------------- ----------------------------
Effect of exchange rate changes
on cash and cash equivalents (65) 25 -
---------------------------------- ------------------------- ------------------------- ----------------------------
Cash and cash equivalents at the
end of the period 32,708 28,554 29,268
---------------------------------- ------------------------- ------------------------- ----------------------------
6 months 6 months Year ended
to 30 June to 30 June 31 December
2023 2022 2022
Cash generated/(used) from operations GBP'000 GBP'000 GBP'000
(unaudited) (unaudited) (audited)
--------------------------------------------- -------------- ------------- -------------
(Loss)/profit for the financial period/year (1,724) (1,790) 5,347
Income tax 553 (127) 1,976
Net interest expense 3 57 143
Share of post tax (profits)/losses/
of equity accounted joint venture (84) 46 -
--------------------------------------------- -------------- ------------- -------------
Operating (loss)/profit (1,252) (1,814) 7,466
Depreciation charge 911 677 1,633
Amortisation of intangible assets 507 366 804
(Loss)/profit on disposal - (40) 21
Share based payments 2,178 2,025 3,552
Provisions (38) - -
Decrease/(increase) in trade and other
receivables 1,394 60 (5,210)
(Decrease)/increase in trade and other
payables 1,786 (4,174) (6,971)
--------------------------------------------- -------------- ------------- -------------
Cash generated/(used) from operations 5,486 (2,900) 1,295
--------------------------------------------- -------------- ------------- -------------
NOTES TO THE UNAUDITED INTERIM FINANCIAL INFORMATION
1. General Information
The principal activity of LBG Media plc ('the Company') is that
of a holding company and the principal activity of the Company and
its subsidiaries ('the Group') is that of an online media
publisher. The Company was incorporated on 20 October 2021 and is a
public company limited by shares registered in England & Wales.
The registered office of the Company is 20 Dale Street, Manchester,
M1 1EZ. The Company registration number is 13693251. The Company is
listed on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange.
A copy of the audited annual statutory accounts for the Group
and the Half Yearly report can be found on the company's website:
https://lbgmedia.co.uk .
2. Basis of preparation
The interim financial information of the Group for the six
months ended 30 June 2023, which is unaudited, has been prepared in
accordance with the recognition and measurement principles of
International Financial Reporting Standards ('IFRS') and the
accounting policies adopted by the Group and set out in the Annual
Report and Financial Statements for the year ended 31 December
2022. The Directors do not anticipate any changes in these
accounting policies for the year ended 31 December 2023.
The unaudited interim financial information has been prepared on
a going concern basis under the historical cost convention. The
unaudited interim financial information is presented in pounds
sterling and all values are rounded to the nearest thousand pounds
(GBP'000), except where otherwise indicated. The interim financial
information, including for the year ended 31 December 2022, does
not constitute statutory accounts for the purposes of section 434
of the Companies Act 2006. The statutory accounts for the year
ended 31 December 2022 have been delivered to the Registrar of
Companies and the auditor's report on those accounts was
unqualified, did not draw attention to any matters by way of
emphasis, and did not contain a statement under 498(2) or 498(3) of
the Companies Act 2006.
This unaudited interim financial information has been prepared
in accordance with the requirements of the AIM Rules for Companies
and in accordance with this basis of preparation.
3. Revenue
The trading operations of the Group are in the online media
publishing industry and are all continuing.
Analysis of revenue
The Group's revenue and operating profit relate entirely to its
principal activity.
The analysis of revenue by stream is:
6 months 6 months to
to 30 June 30 June 2022
2023
GBP'000 GBP'000
(unaudited) (unaudited)
---------- -------------- --------------
Revenue
Direct 11,464 10,545
Indirect 15,321 13,578
Other 462 640
---------- -------------- --------------
27,247 24,763
---------- -------------- --------------
NOTES TO THE UNAUDITED INTERIM FINANCIAL INFORMATION
(continued)
4. Adjusting items
A breakdown of adjusting items is provided below:
6 months 6 months to
to 30 June 30 June 2022
2023
GBP'000 GBP'000
(unaudited) (unaudited)
------------------------------------------ -------------- --------------
Costs associated with team reorganisation 273 -
One-off cost-of-living payment 272 -
Acquisition related fees 124 -
Total adjusting items 669 -
------------------------------------------ -------------- --------------
Restructuring
During the period, the Group continued to review its divisional
and central structures and made a small number of further
redundancies totalling GBP0.3m. Costs associated with team member
reorganisations of GBP0.3m relate to exit costs of personnel
leaving the business on an involuntary basis, due to
reorganisations within our operating divisions and centralised
functions. Due to the nature of these costs, management deem them
to be adjusting items in order to better reflect our underlying
performance. Exit costs outside of these circumstances are treated
as an operating expense.
One-off cost-of-living payment
Recognising the cost-of-living crisis and the need to retain
staff in these challenging times, the Group awarded a one-off
cost-of-living payment to employees within the period with the
condition of continued employment. The payment is repayable by
employees if they were to leave prior to the year end. This is
considered a one-off incentive and there are no current plans to
complete a similar exercise in the future.
Acquisition related fees
During the period, the Group incurred legal and other advisory
costs associated with our acquisition activity totalling
GBP0.1m.
5. Income tax
Tax expense/(credit) included in consolidated statement of
comprehensive income:
6 months 6 months
to 30 June to 30 June
2023 2022
GBP'000 GBP'000
(unaudited) ( unaudited)
----------------------------------------- ------------- -------------
Current period tax:
Current taxation charge for the period 856 171
Adjustments in respect of prior periods 72 -
Total current tax 928 171
----------------------------------------- ------------- -------------
Deferred tax:
Current period (506) (510)
Effect of change in tax rates 13 (16)
Adjustments in respect of prior periods 118 228
----------------------------------------- ------------- -------------
Total deferred tax (375) (298)
----------------------------------------- ------------- -------------
Total tax on loss on ordinary activities 553 (127)
----------------------------------------- ------------- -------------
Equity items
Current tax - -
Deferred tax (1) -
----------------------------------------- ------------- -------------
Total tax recognised in equity (1) -
----------------------------------------- ------------- -------------
NOTES TO THE UNAUDITED INTERIM FINANCIAL INFORMATION
(continued)
5. Income tax (continued)
Reconciliation of tax charge
The tax assessed for the year is higher (2022: higher) than at
the standard rate of corporation tax in the UK. The differences are
explained below:
6 months 6 months to
to 30 June 30 June 2022
2023
GBP'000 GBP'000
(unaudited) (unaudited)
------------------------------------------------------- ------------- -------------
Loss before taxation (1,171) (1,917)
------------------------------------------------------- ------------- -------------
Tax on loss multiplied by standard rate of corporation
tax in the UK at 22% (2022: 19%) (258) (364)
Effects of:
Adjustments in respect of prior periods 190 229
Expenses not deductible 558 285
Non-taxable income (14) (6)
Effect of change in UK tax rates 13 (16)
Effect of overseas tax rates (117) 60
Exempt items 19 12
Amounts not recognised 175 -
FX (12) -
Share valuation (1) (327)
------------------------------------------------------- ------------- -------------
Total taxation (credit)/charge 553 (127)
------------------------------------------------------- ------------- -------------
NOTES TO THE UNAUDITED INTERIM FINANCIAL INFORMATION
(continued)
6. Goodwill and other intangible assets
Trade-marks Software Relation- Brand Content Goodwill Social Total
and licenses ships library Media
Pages
GBP'000 GBP'000 GBP'000 GBP'000 GBP'000 GBP'000 GBP'000 GBP'000
-------------------------- -------------- --------- ---------- -------- --------- --------- -------- --------
Cost
At 1 January 2022 28 639 1,300 4,626 300 10,094 - 16,987
Additions - 46 - - - - 1,134 1,180
Reclassifications - - - (128) - - 128 -
Exchange adjustments - - - 2 - - - 2
-------------------------- -------------- --------- ---------- -------- --------- --------- -------- --------
At 30 June 2022 28 685 1,300 4,500 300 10,094 1,262 18,169
Additions - 498 - - - - - 498
Reclassification - - - 188 - - (188) -
Exchange Adjustments - - - 6 - - - 6
At 31 December
2022 28 1,183 1,300 4,694 300 10,094 1,074 18,673
Additions - 340 - - - - 458 798
Exchange Adjustments - - - (11) - - (14) (25)
-------------------------- -------------- --------- ---------- -------- --------- --------- -------- --------
At 30 June 2023 28 1,523 1,300 4,683 300 10,094 1,518 19,446
-------------------------- -------------- --------- ---------- -------- --------- --------- -------- --------
Accumulated Amortisation
At 1 January 2022 21 236 420 1,454 298 - - 2,429
Charge for the
period 4 62 61 224 - - 15 366
-------------------------- -------------- --------- ---------- -------- --------- --------- -------- --------
At 30 June 2022 25 298 481 1,678 298 - 15 2,795
Charge for the
period 2 60 68 269 - - 39 438
Exchange Adjustments - 1 1 2 - - - 4
-------------------------- -------------- --------- ---------- -------- --------- --------- -------- --------
At 31 December
2022 27 359 550 1,949 298 - 54 3,237
Charge for the
period - 90 65 256 2 - 94 507
Exchange Adjustments - - - (4) - - (1) (5)
-------------------------- -------------- --------- ---------- -------- --------- --------- -------- --------
At 30 June 2023 27 449 615 2,201 300 - 147 3,739
-------------------------- -------------- --------- ---------- -------- --------- --------- -------- --------
Net book value
At 30 June 2022 3 387 819 2,822 2 10,094 1,247 15,374
At 31 December
2022 1 824 750 2,745 2 10,094 1,020 15,436
-------------------------- -------------- --------- ---------- -------- --------- --------- -------- --------
At 30 June 2023 1 1,074 685 2,482 - 10,094 1,371 15,707
-------------------------- -------------- --------- ---------- -------- --------- --------- -------- --------
NOTES TO THE UNAUDITED INTERIM FINANCIAL INFORMATION
(continued)
7. Earnings per share
There is no difference between profit as disclosed within the
statement of comprehensive income and earnings used within the
earnings per share calculation for the reporting periods.
Basic earnings per share calculation:
6 months to 30 June 2023 6 months to 30 June 2022 Year ended 31 December 2022
GBP'000 GBP'000 GBP'000
(unaudited) (unaudited) (audited)
---------------------------------- ------------------------ --------------------------- ---------------------------
(Loss)/earnings per share from
continuing operations
(Loss)/earnings, GBP'000 (1,724) (1,790) 5,347
Number of shares, number 206,458,742 205,714,289 205,714,289
---------------------------------- ------------------------ --------------------------- ---------------------------
(Loss)/earnings per share, pence (0.8) (0.9) 2.6
---------------------------------- ------------------------ --------------------------- ---------------------------
Diluted earnings per share
calculation:
---------------------------------- ------------------------ --------------------------- ---------------------------
6 months to 30 June 2023 6 months to 30 June 2022 Year ended 31 December 2022
GBP'000 GBP'000 GBP'000
(unaudited) (unaudited) (audited)
---------------------------------- ------------------------ --------------------------- ---------------------------
Diluted (loss)/earnings per share
from continuing operations
(Loss)/earnings, GBP'000 (1,724) (1,790) 5,347
Number of shares, number 217,777,464 205,714,289 211,879,344
---------------------------------- ------------------------ --------------------------- ---------------------------
Diluted (loss)/earnings per share,
pence (0.8) (0.9) 2.5
---------------------------------- ------------------------ --------------------------- ---------------------------
Reconciliation from weighted average number of shares used in
basic earnings per share to diluted earnings per share:
6 months to 30 June 2023 6 months to 30 June 2022 Year ended 31 December 2022
(unaudited) (unaudited) (audited)
------------------------------------- ------------------------ ------------------------ ---------------------------
Number of shares in issue at the
start of the period 205,714,289 205,714,289 205,714,289
Effects of shares issued in the
period 744,453 - -
Weighted average number of shares
used in basic earnings per share 206,458,742 205,714,289 205,714,289
Employee share options 11,318,722 - 6,165,055
------------------------------------- ------------------------ ------------------------ ---------------------------
Weighted average number of shares
used in diluted earnings per share 217,777,464 205,714,289 211,879,344
------------------------------------- ------------------------ ------------------------ ---------------------------
8. Borrowings
6 months 6 months Year ended
to 30 June to 30 June 31 December
2023 2022 2022
GBP'000 GBP'000 GBP'000
(unaudited) (unaudited) (audited)
------------------- -------------- ------------- -------------
Current
Lease liabilities 1,334 1,364 1,282
------------------- -------------- ------------- -------------
1,334 1,364 1,282
------------------- -------------- ------------- -------------
Non-current
Lease liabilities 1,428 2,474 1,960
------------------- -------------- ------------- -------------
1,428 2,474 1,960
------------------- -------------- ------------- -------------
Total borrowings 2,762 3,838 3,242
------------------- -------------- ------------- -------------
NOTES TO THE UNAUDITED INTERIM FINANCIAL INFORMATION
(continued)
8. Borrowings (continued)
6 months 6 months Year ended
to 30 June to 30 June 31 December
2023 2022 2022
GBP'000 GBP'000 GBP'000 (audited)
(unaudited)
(unaudited)
-------------------------------------------- ------------- ------------- ------------------
Amount repayable
Within one year 1,334 1,364 1,282
In more than one year but less than two
years 1,131 1,127 1,162
In more than two years but less than three
years 297 1,055 798
In more than three years but less than - 292 -
four years
2,762 3,838 3,242
-------------------------------------------- ------------- ------------- ------------------
During the period to 30 June 2023, GBP750k was paid by the Group
in relation to lease payments and GBP50k of interest paid in
relation to leases.
9. Related parties
The following transactions were carried out with related
parties:
6 months 6 months Year ended
to 30 June to 30 June 31 December
2023 2022 2022
GBP'000 GBP'000 GBP'000
(unaudited) (unaudited) (audited)
----------------------------------------------- -------------- ------------- -------------
Entity controlled by key management personnel
Purchase of services (1) 135 140 276
Tax settlement on behalf of Director (2) - - 224
----------------------------------------------- -------------- ------------- -------------
135 140 500
----------------------------------------------- -------------- ------------- -------------
(1) Services are purchased from Kamani Commercial Property Ltd
(an entity controlled by a significant shareholder) on normal
commercial terms and conditions. Kamani Commercial Property Ltd is
a firm belonging to Mahmud Abdullah Kamani, a former Director of
the Group. The Group leases the Manchester Dale Street properties
from Kamani Commercial Property Ltd. The 'purchase of services' in
the table above relates to the payments made in the year for the
Dale Street properties for both rent and service charges. Payments
made to 30 June 2023 totalled GBP135k (31 December 2022: GBP276k,
30 June 2022: GBP140k). The amount outstanding of the lease
liability as at 30 June 2023 is GBPnil (31 December 2022: GBP88k,
30 June 2022: GBP177k). The outstanding service charge balance at
30 June 2023 is GBPnil (31 December 2022: GBPnil, 30 June 2022:
GBPnil) and outstanding property insurance is GBPnil (31 December
2022: GBPnil, 30 June 2022: GBPnil).
(2) In the prior year the Group agreed to settle a PAYE
liability (relating to a previously undisclosed benefit in kind) on
behalf of Solly Solomou and Jess Solomou (former employee and wife
of Solly Solomou), totalling GBP0.2m. This balance remains accrued
as a liability at the half year.
ALTERNATIVE PERFORMANCE MEASURES (APMs) and GLOSSARY OF
TERMS
Introduction
In the reporting of financial information, the Directors have
adopted various Alternative Performance Measures (APMs) of
financial performance, position or cash flows other than those
defined or specified under International Financial Reporting
Standards (IFRS). These measures are not defined by IFRS and
therefore may not be directly comparable with other companies'
APMs, including those in the Group's industry. APMs should be
considered in addition to IFRS measures and are not intended to be
a substitute for IFRS measurements.
Purpose
The Directors believe that these APMs provide additional useful
information on the underlying performance and position of LBG Media
plc's. APMs are also used to enhance the comparability of
information between reporting periods by adjusting for
non-recurring or uncontrollable factors which affect IFRS measures,
to aid the user in understanding LBG Media plc's performance.
Consequently, APMs are used by the Directors and management for
performance analysis, planning, reporting and incentive-setting
purposes and have remained consistent with prior year.
The key APMs that the Group has focused on this period are as
follows:
Adjusted EBITDA This profit measure shows the Group's Earnings before
Interest, Tax, Depreciation and Amortisation adjusted
for asset gains and losses, share based payments
(including employers NIC as appropriate) and adjusting
items.
Adjusted EBITDA is used for internal performance
analysis to assess the execution of our strategies.
Management believe that this adjusted measure is
an appropriate metric to understand the underlying
performance of the Group.
---------------- --------------------------------------------------------
A glossary of other terms used in the interim financial
information can be found below:
Global audience Includes global social media platform followers and
global monthly online users to LBG Media websites.
Content views Content views is the number of views of content across
all social platforms and websites. The definition
of what constitutes a view can vary across the social
platforms. The total excludes content view data form
Instagram which is currently not readily available.
IPO First public sale of shares by privately owned company.
Allowing the company to become publicly listed on
a recognised stock exchange i.e. AIM.
AIM The Alternative Investment Market (AIM) is a sub-market
of the London Stock Exchange.
Multi-platform Refers to the Group operating on multiple social
media platforms including Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat,
TikTok, Twitter and YouTube. In addition, the Group
operates 5 owned and operated websites - www.ladbible.com
, www.sportbible.com , www.tyla.com , www.gamingbible.com
and www.unilad.com .
---------------- -----------------------------------------------------------
Multi-channel Refers to the Group's portfolio of brands more details
can be found in the publicly available admission
document on pages 10 and 11.
---------------- -----------------------------------------------------------
This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the
London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct
Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United
Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution
of this information may apply. For further information, please
contact rns@lseg.com or visit www.rns.com.
RNS may use your IP address to confirm compliance with the terms
and conditions, to analyse how you engage with the information
contained in this communication, and to share such analysis on an
anonymised basis with others as part of our commercial services.
For further information about how RNS and the London Stock Exchange
use the personal data you provide us, please see our Privacy
Policy.
END
IR EANNNFAXDEFA
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
September 20, 2023 02:00 ET (06:00 GMT)
Lbg Media (LSE:LBG)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2024 to May 2024
Lbg Media (LSE:LBG)
Historical Stock Chart
From May 2023 to May 2024
