A pass mark for SCA’s Grant Blackley? How the market reacted to Seven’s profit warning
Welcome to a midweek update from Unmade, the industry newsletter your boss actually reads.
Today: The verdict on Grant Blackley, and a profit warning from Seven West Media.
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A complicated legacy for Grant Blackley
Tim Burrowes writes:
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From an SCA spokesperson:
A few pertinent points to make on this story today:
- Grant Blackley joined SCA in 2015
- In 2016, SCA sold $10m of annual earnings for $207 million to the Australian Traffic Network for a 22-year period to broadcast its news and traffic reports. This included an upfront payment of $100m to reduce the debt load.
- In 2017, SCA sold its Northern NSW TV assets to WIN. So while SCA lost earnings of $10.5 million from the sale, it sold the assets for a 5x multiple of $55 million. The funds were used to further reduce the debt load.
- These two transactions effectively reduced SCA’s normal earnings by $20.5m per year thereafter – but thankfully substantially reduced debt and improved SCA’s balance sheet.
- SCA has unashamedly invested in digital audio via LiSTNR for the future strength of the company, and maintained the investment through the COVID period. The investment to date has been $45 million or $15 million each year for FY 20, FY 21 and FY 22. The company has offered guidance to be cash flow positive no later than FY25.
– LiSTNR is the leading Australian podcast publisher and #1 sales representation house in Australia inclusive of exclusive rights with Stitcher and Wondery.