Premier Sports deal sealed as half-year operating profit soars for STV
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| 03 September 2019

After a six-month period which it says has seen its strategic plan accelerate growth, Scottish broadcaster STV has claimed strong financial performance ahead of expectations in the first half of 2019.

For the half-yearly period to 30 June 2019, the company reported that adjusted operating profit was up 10% annually to £11.0 million with adjusted earnings per share (EPS) rising 9% compared with the same period of 2018 to 21.8p. the company’s broadcast operating profit climbed 7% year-on-year to £9.7 million while digital operating profit saw significant growth of up 43% to £3.0 million.

On the flipside, the company revealed that the operating loss at STV Productions rose by £500,00 to £1.7 million due to the phasing of programme deliveries being strongly weighted to the second half.
Looking at the cash generation driving the profits, STV recalled that for H1 2019, total revenue was down 5% year-on-year to £54.9 million, primarily due to phasing in STV Productions and closure of the loss-making STV2.

Total advertising revenue slipped 0.6% to £48.8 million compared with 2018, actually outperforming the wider TV market and also offset by continued growth in digital which grew 19% on a yearly basis and regional advertising (+19%). Digital and regional revenues now account for just over a quarter of the firm’s total advertising revenue, up from 21% in 2017, reducing reliance on the national market.

Other data showed that STV was the biggest TV channel in Scotland for young viewers, reaching 91% of all 16-34s while online streams on STV Player were up 17% annually and online viewing up 13% on a yearly basis even without the boost from the 2018 FIFA World Cup. The company claimed strong viewing performance driven by entertainment hits including Britain’s Got Talent and The Chase, dramas Manhunt, Cheat and The Bay, which broke all STV streaming records, and local favourites Sean’s Scotland and the revamped STV News at Six.

“We continue to make good progress with our strategic growth plan and have laid solid foundations for the future,” said STV chief executive officer Simon Pitts. “Although current political uncertainty around Brexit will continue to impact total national advertising revenue in the second half, we expect further growth in digital and regional revenue and an improved performance from STV Productions.”

Just as it was publishing its half yearly results, STV announced a new partnership with pay-TV sports broadcaster, Premier Sports and its free-to-air sister channel, FreeSports. The partnership will initially cover two distinct areas with scope to develop and extend as both STV and Premier Sports continue to grow their audiences. Through this new deal, the STV Player will become the first partner to host a live stream of 24-hour sports channel, FreeSports, providing an ‘always on’ sports offering on the STV Player.