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Beasley Broadcast Group, 6/12/20 | | page 3 |
“Beasley expects these actions to reduce total annual operating expenses by approximately $21 million compared to full year 2019 levels, to offset the reduction in traditional advertising revenue that has occurred as a result of the pandemic. Notably, while mandated stay at home orders severely impacted advertising revenue in March, April, and May, we have seen recent increases in advertising activity in markets that havere-opened, with May advertising revenues ahead of April, and bookings for June, as of today, already exceeding May’s results.
“In addition to our company-wide cost cutting initiatives, Beasley is committed to using every resource available to support our balance sheet and capital structure. In this regard, as previously announced, we are working with our credit facility lenders to obtain an amendment that will provide the financial flexibility we need in this challenging environment to prepare our business for the fullre-opening of the economy. During the first quarter, we drew $7.5 million against our revolver and used cash from operations to make scheduled debt repayments of approximately $3.0 million and ended March 31, 2020 with total outstanding debt of $267 million. In addition, the Board of Directors has suspended future quarterly dividends until the significant uncertainty of the current situation has passed and it is determined that resumption of dividend payments is in the best interest of the Company’s shareholders.
“Beasley Broadcast Group takes our commitment to the communities we serve very seriously, and our mission, as it always has been for nearly six decades as broadcasters, is to deliver high-quality, premium local content and critical safety information to our listeners across all traditional and digital media platforms. Now, more than ever, people need a trusted, relied upon source of news and entertainment that connects them to their local communities, and I am proud of our teams for their perseverance in upholding this commitment despite the unique and evolving challenges facing the country now.
“We believe our strong local radio and digital platform and competitive positions in our markets combined with the experience of our team and the actions we are taking to reduce costs and support our balance sheet and liquidity position will be key factors in our ability to recover from this crisis. Looking ahead, we remain focused on our strategic priorities of realizing synergy targets, reducing debt and leverage, taking advantage of political revenue opportunities and benefiting from our esports investments and operations. While we cannot predict the duration of theCOVID-19 pandemic’s impact on our operations, Beasley intends to continue to actively manage our business to best position the Company for the future, with the goal of delivering exceptional content and services to our listeners, advertisers, online users and esports fans, while creating new value for our shareholders including through our revenue diversification initiatives, which are creating new opportunities for future growth.”
Conference Call and Webcast Information
The Company will not be hosting a conference in connection with the release of its first quarter earnings.
About Beasley Broadcast Group
Celebrating its 59th anniversary this year, Beasley Broadcast Group, Inc., (www.bbgi.com) was founded in 1961 by George G. Beasley who remains the Company’s Chairman of the Board. Beasley Broadcast Group owns and operates 64 stations (47 FM and 17 AM) in 15 large- andmid-size markets in the United States. Approximately 19 million consumers listen to Beasley radio stations weeklyover-the-air, online and on smartphones and tablets, and millions regularly engage with the Company’s brands and personalities through digital platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, text, apps and email. Beasley recently acquired a majority interest in the Overwatch League’s Houston Outlaws esports team and owns BeasleyXP, a national esports content hub. For more information, please visitwww.bbgi.com.
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