Endeavor’s revenue fell 16% year-over-year to $1.26 billion in its most recent quarter, largely due to the absence of its divested Endeavor Content business, as the company delivered an exciting fourth quarter. A diversified business and a focus on sports and live events limits the advertising success of other media companies, and it hasn’t suffered much from a slowdown in content spending by the majors.
“We are encouraged by our performance in our first full year as a public company,” said CEO Ariel Emanuel, looking ahead to Endeavor’s 2021 IPO. “Our company has demonstrated resilience despite ongoing macroeconomic headwinds. Even as 2023 approaches, we remain confident in Endeavor’s ability to deliver long-term value.”
This is evident from the press release. Later, on a call scheduled for 5 p.m. ET, Endeavor noted that Emanuel’s opening speech, which he wrote and will be written, will not be the CEO himself, but from Speechify, a startup that specializing in AI specializing in speech synthesis. Endeavor has a small minority stake in the company, which is said to use voice AI to make surveys. He will personally answer during the Q&A.
“For the first time the sound was used for Emanuel’s opening speech on Endeavor’s fourth
The call for 2022 quarterly and full year results was generated by Endeavor partner Speechify, a company
specializes in generative AI for speech synthesis,” the company says.
AI is becoming such a ubiquitous presence that the WGA’s new requirements pattern, released yesterday, seeks for the first time to “regulate the use of materials produced with artificial intelligence or similar technology.”
This is the first quarterly report since things went wrong. Earlier this year, there was an uproar over UFC CEO Dana White, who was caught on video beating his wife at a New Year’s Eve party. Neither Endeavor nor Emanuel have commented on this and are unlikely to if asked by financial analysts, which is also unlikely. White weighed himself.
A more likely subject could be WWE, which is currently up for sale from majority owner Vince McMahon.
Endeavor is heavily in debt, but some Wall Street analysts have speculated about how a deal that would bring the two rivals together might materialize. The potential for a stuck trade could weigh on Endeavor’s stock.
By the way, Emanuel’s opening speech on the webcast, which he wrote and scripted, is not spoken by the CEO himself, but by Speechify, a startup specializing in AI speech synthesis. Endeavor has a small minority stake in the company, which is said to use voice AI to make surveys. He will personally answer during the Q&A.
Revenue came in well below Wall Street forecasts as delivery of some unscripted content was pushed back from December to January.
The company’s adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) of $239.6 million was 4% higher than the Street’s.
Net losses widened to $226 million from $16.7 million, mainly due to a large one-time tax bill.
The company forecasts full-year 2023 revenue of $5.825 billion to $5.975 billion with adjusted EBITDA of $1.25 billion to $1.305 billion.
Sports features: UFC-led revenue increased 8% to $301 million, driven by higher rights fees, sponsorships, licensing, commercial PPV and live event-related revenue. Adjusted EBITDA of $142 million increased 14%. For the year, UFC had 21 consecutive sellouts, record sponsorship sales volume and renewed 10 international media rights deals with a compound annual total volume increase of more than 100%, Endeavor said.
Events, experiences and rights: Revenue of $558 million rose 8%, reflecting greater consumer demand and the lifting of Covid restrictions on live events such as the Miami Open, Super Bowl LVI and NCAA March Madness games, as well as the inclusion of the Madrid Open and the OpenBet sports betting platform.
The company has seen an increase in boarding school and summer camp enrollments with IMG Academy and NCSA University’s athletic recruiting network. Sales were down due to the expiration of some media rights deals, the cyclical nature of some sporting events and the sale of the Miss Universe organization ahead of the big event in January.
The company posted adjusted EBITDA of $52.4 million for the quarter, down 4%.
Portrayal Revenue of $408 million fell 43% as much of the revenue ($333 million) disappeared with the sale of Endeavor’s content business last January. The agency’s core business was supported by demand for premium content and the continued recovery of live events.
Endeavor’s 160over90 marketing subsidiary posted EBITDA of $124 million for the quarter, up 5%. Total debt, a concern for the company, was about $5.17 billion at the end of the year, compared with $5.4 billion in the September quarter.
Source: Deadline
Joseph Fearn is an entertainment and television aficionado who writes for The Fashion Vibes. With a keen eye for what’s hot in the world of TV, Joseph keeps his readers informed about the latest trends and must-see shows.
