Business News

Meredith Delivers Over 15 Percent Growth In Fiscal 2013 Earnings Per Share

Friday 26. July 2013 - Total Company Revenues Increase by 7 percent; Local Media Group Generates Record Performance

Meredith Corporation (NYSE: MDP; www.meredith.com), the leading media and marketing company serving 100 million American women, today reported fiscal 2013 earnings per share grew 19 percent to $2.74. Excluding special items, fiscal 2013 earnings per share increased 16 percent to $2.91. Total revenues rose 7 percent to $1.5 billion, and advertising revenues increased 7 percent to $824 million.
“Fiscal 2013 was a year of strong growth in revenues, profit and cash flow,” said Meredith Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Stephen M. Lacy. “Our Local Media Group achieved the highest revenue and profit performance in its 65-year history. Our National Media Group grew both advertising and circulation revenues. We strengthened our connection to consumers across media platforms. And importantly, we continued to deliver on our Total Shareholder Return strategy by growing free cash flow and returning more cash to shareholders through increased dividends and share repurchases.”
Lacy noted the following fiscal 2013 financial highlights:
— Local Media Group revenues grew nearly 20 percent to $376 million, a
record high. Net political advertising revenues were $39 million and
operating profit grew more than 40 percent to $124 million. All
represent record highs.
— National Media Group revenues grew 3 percent. Advertising revenues
increased 5 percent, boosted by the acquisitions of the Allrecipes,
EveryDay with Rachael Ray and FamilyFun brands. On a comparable basis,
advertising revenues declined 6 percent. Circulation revenues also
increased, benefitting from growth at comparable titles; contributions
from EveryDay with Rachael Ray and FamilyFun magazines; and tests of a
magazine based on the Allrecipes brand. Additionally, brand licensing
activities delivered stronger performance.
— Total Company digital advertising revenues grew more than 50 percent,
reaching a record high. National Media Group digital advertising
revenues increased 62 percent, while Local Media Group digital
advertising revenues rose 8 percent. Advertising revenues generated
from digital sources continued to grow, reaching an all-time high of 11
percent of Meredith’s total advertising revenues in fiscal 2013.
— Cash flow from operations grew to nearly $190 million. Consistent with
Meredith’s Total Shareholder Return (TSR) strategy, Meredith returned
$125 million to shareholders through increased dividends and share
repurchases, a nearly 40 percent increase.
Fiscal 2013 fourth quarter earnings per share grew 12 percent to $0.75, and revenues rose 3 percent to $387 million. Results were driven by stronger performance from both Meredith’s National and Local media groups.
FISCAL 2013 BUSINESS HIGHLIGHTS
Lacy noted that Meredith continued to execute a series of well-defined strategic growth initiatives during fiscal 2013 to deliver revenue, profit and free cash flow growth, and increase shareholder value over time. These included:
— Increasing its powerful consumer connection – Consumer engagement
strengthened across Meredith’s media platforms as the Company executed
initiatives to refresh and enhance its popular national and local
brands. Meredith’s monthly magazine audience is an impressive 115
million, while its television stations continue to deliver strong
ratings performances. The Company’s digital audience grew to nearly 53
million unique visitors per month.
— Strengthening its core magazine and television brands – Advertising
rates grew in both businesses as Meredith executed a series of
innovative sales programs, including the Meredith Sales Guarantee, which
demonstrates quantitatively that advertising in Meredith magazines
increases retail sales for clients. The Company also completed a number
of initiatives to increase efficiencies, reduce costs and improve
operating profit margins.
— Growing revenues from non-advertising-related activities – Meredith’s
Brand Licensing activities delivered stronger performance, driven by an
expansion of the Better Homes and Gardens line of branded products at
Walmart stores across the U.S., along with growth in the Better Homes
and Gardens real estate network with Realogy. All of Meredith
Xcelerated Marketing’s major clients renewed for calendar 2013, and the
new business pipeline is very robust. Additionally, retransmission
revenues grew as Meredith renewed agreements with cable and satellite
providers.
— Making strategic investments to scale the business – Meredith positioned
itself for continued growth with the acquisition of the Parenting and
BabyTalk brands, and the launch of a magazine based on the Allrecipes
digital brand that will debut with the November/December 2013 issue.
— Expanding digital, mobile, video and social platforms – Meredith
continued its rapid expansion across emerging platforms. Highlights
included website relaunches; tablet edition expansions; development of
new mobile apps; increased video creation; and growth across social
media platforms such as Facebook and Pinterest. Meredith also agreed to
expand the reach of its daily syndicated The Better Show through cable
distribution on the Hallmark Channel.
— Executing its successful Total Shareholder Return strategy – Meredith’s
stock price increased 49 percent in fiscal 2013, and its dividend
yielded approximately 4 percent. That equates to a total return of 53
percent. Key elements of the strategy are (1) An annual dividend of
$1.63 per share; (2) A $100 million share repurchase program; and (3)
Ongoing investments to scale the business and increase shareholder value
over time.
“We continue to take aggressive steps to grow our leading position serving American women,” Lacy said. “These strategic actions are enhancing our strong consumer connection and producing top-line revenue growth and margin improvement.”
OPERATING GROUP DETAIL
NATIONAL MEDIA GROUP
Meredith’s National Media Group includes leading national consumer media brands delivered over multiple platforms that offer clients access to 100 million unduplicated American women every month – a reach unmatched in the industry. It also features robust brand licensing activities and innovative business-to-business marketing products and services.
Fiscal 2013 National Media Group revenues grew 3 percent to $1.1 billion. Operating profit grew 4 percent to $138 million.
Looking more closely at advertising performance in fiscal 2013:
— Total advertising revenues grew 5 percent. On a comparable basis,
advertising revenues declined 6 percent, with performance better in the
second half of fiscal 2013 than in the first half.
— Digital advertising revenues grew 62 percent, boosted by the addition of
Allrecipes.com. On a comparable basis, digital advertising revenues
grew 12 percent.
— The food and beverage (+14%), apparel (+22%), and media and
entertainment (+25%) categories were stronger, and the weighted average
net revenue per magazine page increased approximately 3 percent.
— Meredith successfully completed the first year of its innovative
Meredith Sales Guarantee. Participating brands experienced an average
return on investment (ROI) of $7.81 for every $1 invested in advertising
in Meredith magazines.
Circulation revenues were higher in fiscal 2013 due to growth from existing, or comparable, titles, and the addition of EveryDay with Rachael Ray, FamilyFun, and the Allrecipes magazine tests.
Digital traffic was a strong 43 million unique visitors in fiscal 2013, helped by the acquisition of Allrecipes and aggressive digital marketing initiatives. In addition, Meredith generated 5.5 million digital orders for print magazine subscriptions during fiscal 2013, an increase of nearly 70 percent over the prior year.
“We’re pleased that our strategic initiatives to strengthen our businesses – including magazine and digital media, circulation and brand licensing – are delivering top-line growth,” said National Media Group President Tom Harty. “Meanwhile, our acquired brands are exceeding expectations and have improved our competitive position in the marketplace.”
Other revenues were $257 million in fiscal 2013, compared to $283 million in the prior year. This was due primarily to lower revenues at Meredith Xcelerated Marketing, partially offset by stronger performance from Meredith’s brand licensing activities.
As previously communicated, Meredith Xcelerated Marketing experienced reductions in programs from certain clients in calendar 2012. However, performance has strengthened in calendar 2013, driven by renewals of all major clients, program expansions and new business wins. As a result, Meredith Xcelerated Marketing delivered better performance in the second half of fiscal 2013 than in the first half. Meredith expects to deliver revenue and profit growth from Meredith Xcelerated Marketing in calendar 2013.
Fiscal 2013 fourth quarter National Media Group revenues rose 2 percent to $295 million. Operating profit grew 15 percent to $43 million, driven by stronger performance from brand licensing activities, Allrecipes and Meredith Xcelerated Marketing.
LOCAL MEDIA GROUP
Meredith’s Local Media Group consists of leading local television stations, many in fast-growing markets, and a video content creation unit that produces national broadcast and custom programming.
Fiscal 2013 Local Media Group revenues rose 19 percent to $376 million. Operating profit grew 41 percent to $124 million. Both results represent record highs.
Looking more closely at performance in fiscal 2013:
— Non-political advertising revenues were $269 million, compared to $271
million in the prior year. The automotive (+8 percent), furnishings (+6
percent) and media (+18 percent) categories were stronger.
— Political revenues were a record $39 million.
— Other revenues and operating expenses both increased, due primarily to
growth in retransmission revenues from cable and satellite television
operators, and programming fees paid to affiliated networks.
— EBITDA margin was 40 percent.
Meredith’s connection with viewers also strengthened in fiscal 2013. Meredith’s stations in Hartford, Portland and Saginaw maintained their market leadership in news. In addition, morning and evening news ratings in Kansas City and Las Vegas each grew by more than 50 percent, while late news ratings grew substantially in Nashville.
Digital traffic was strong in fiscal 2013, driven by initiatives to improve content and search engine optimization, as well as continued focus on mobile apps aimed at news, sports and weather-related information.
Meredith Video Studios agreed to significantly expand the reach of its daily syndicated The Better Show through an agreement with Crown Media Family Networks to distribute the program on the Hallmark Channel beginning in September 2013. The agreement gives the program its first national cable distribution platform as the Hallmark Channel is available in nearly 90 million homes. In addition, The Better Show was renewed for a seventh season in syndication.
“Our record financial performance speaks to the fundamental strength of our television broadcasting business,” said Local Media Group President Paul Karpowicz. “We continue to engage viewers with compelling content across media platforms to position ourselves for ongoing growth.”
Fiscal 2013 fourth quarter Local Media Group revenues rose 9 percent to $92 million. Operating profit grew to $28 million, as higher retransmission-related revenues were partially offset by higher programming fees paid to affiliated networks, and $3 million less of political advertising revenues.
OTHER FINANCIAL INFORMATION
Consistent with its TSR strategy, Meredith raised its dividend in February 2013 by 7 percent to an annual rate of $1.63 per share, the 20(th) straight year of an increase. In addition, Meredith repurchased 1.5 million shares of its stock in fiscal 2013. At June 30, 2013, $32 million remained under the current repurchase authorization.
Total debt was $350 million at June 30, 2013, and the weighted average interest rate was 3.6 percent. Meredith’s debt-to-EBITDA ratio for the 12 months ended June 30, 2013, was 1.3 to 1.
Corporate expenses increased $16 million in fiscal 2013 compared to the prior year due primarily to professional fees related to a strategic transaction that did not materialize, along with higher performance-based incentive accruals, consulting expenses and higher investment spending on Next Issue Media.
All earnings per share figures in the text of this release are diluted. Both basic and diluted earnings per share can be found in the attached Condensed Consolidated Statements of Earnings. All fiscal 2013 and fourth quarter financial comparisons are against the prior-year periods. Information on the special items in both fiscal 2013 and fiscal 2012 is available in Tables 1-4.
OUTLOOK
Meredith currently expects full year fiscal 2014 earnings per share to range from $2.60 to $2.95. The Local Media Group will be cycling against a record $39 million in net political advertising revenues recorded in fiscal 2013, partially offset by increased retransmission fees.
Looking at the first quarter of fiscal 2014, compared to the prior-year period:
— National Media Group total advertising revenues are expected to be up
slightly.
— Local Media Group total revenues are expected to be up slightly, with
non-political advertising revenues up in the low-single-digit range.
Meredith will be cycling against $12 million in net political
advertising revenues recorded in the prior-year period.
— Meredith currently expects fiscal 2014 first quarter earnings per share
to range from $0.48 to $0.53.
A number of uncertainties remain that may affect Meredith’s outlook as stated in this press release for the first quarter and full year fiscal 2014. These and other uncertainties are referenced below under “Safe Harbor” and in certain filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.