MEDIA BOY'S WORLD MEDIA NEWS: Advanced Television: MFE net profit up 20% in H1

Thursday 19 September 2024

Advanced Television: MFE net profit up 20% in H1

Story from Advanced Television:

MFE-MediaForEurope (MFE) has reported consolidated net revenues of €1.47 billion for the first half of 2024, an annual increase of 7.8 per cent.

Net profit soared to €104.7 million, a 20.2 per cent increase from the previous year, while EBIT rose to €136.3 million (+12.7 per cent), of which Italy accounted for €59.9 million (+53.5 per cent) and Spain with €76.3 million, down from €81.7 million a year earlier.

Consolidated net financial debt decreased to €662 million from €902.8 million at the end of 2023, while total consolidated operating costs amounted to €1.34 billion (€1.25 billion in H1 2023).

Gross advertising revenues reached €1.43 billion (+6.7 per cent), while free cash flow remained positive at €223.4 million.

Mediaset continued to dominate the Italian TV market in H1 2024, securing the top spot among the commercial target audience (15-64 years) over 24 hours (39.8 per cent), in the day time slot (40.3 per cent) and in prime time (38.4 per cent).

In Spain, MFE achieved a 25.5 per cent share of the total audience over the 24-hour period, plus a 28 per cent share among the commercial target audience. During prime time, the Group’s share was 24.9 per cent of the total audience and 26.9 per cent of the commercial target.

Despite missing out on significant sporting events in Italy and Spain, MFE’s advertising revenue has remained strong in the first nine months of 2024. However, the company said it faces challenges for the remainder of the year due to geopolitical instability, macroeconomic concerns, and tough year-over-year comparisons in Italy.

Commenting on the results, Pier Silvio Berlusconi, CEO at MFE, said: Thanks to the Group’s international dimension and thanks to our increasingly advanced cross-media system, once again this half-year we have achieved results above all expectations. In a period that has also seen results fall across the entire media sector internationally, with drastic cuts in jobs, MFE has recorded constant growth in terms of advertising revenue, profitability and earnings.”