October 8, 2023
Warner Bros Discovery (WBD) has reported financial results for the quarter ended September 30th 2023.
David Zaslav, President and Chief Executive Officer of WBD, commented: “I am very pleased with the strong financial results that our company delivered in Q3, underscored by 22 per cent growth in Adjusted EBITDA and over USD 2 billion (EUR 1.87 bn) in free cash flow, putting us on track to meaningfully exceed USD 5 billion for the year and contributing to our nearly USD 12 billion in debt paydown to date. Among the highlights, our Direct-to-Consumer business had another profitable quarter with USD 111 million of Adjusted EBITDA and launched its new live-programming offerings with CNN Max and the Bleacher Report Add-On, which are showing early signs of contributing to increased engagement and lower churn on Max. We’ve made great strides in just 19 months and are excited to continue building on this strong momentum, as we focus on driving future growth and creating long-term value for our shareholders.”
Q3 Financial Summary & Operational Highlights:
- Q3 total revenues were USD 9.97 billion. Revenues increased 1 % ex-FX compared to the prior year quarter.
- Net loss available to WBD was USD 417 million, and included USD 1.75 billion of pre-tax amortisation driven by acquisition-related intangibles and USD 269 million of pre-tax restructuring expenses.
- Q3 total Adjusted EBITDA was USD 2.96 billion. Adjusted EBITDA increased 22 % ex-FX compared to the prior year quarter.
- Cash provided by operating activities increased to USD 2.51 billion. Reported free cash flow increased to USD 2.05 billion.
- Repaid USD 2.4 billion of debt during Q3. Ended the quarter with USD 2.4 billion of cash on hand, USD 45.3 billion of gross debt, and 4.2x net leverage.
- Global DTC subscribers decreased 0.7 million to 95.1 million at the end of Q3 vs 95.8 million subscribers at the end of Q2. Global DTC ARPU was USD 7.82, a 6 % ex-FX increase vs. the prior year quarter.
- Barbie was the highest grossing film in Warner Bros history, generating nearly USD 1.5 billion in global box office.
- The Nun II was the 6th film in The Conjuring Universe to cross USD 250 million in global box office. As a franchise, The Conjuring Universe has grossed nearly USD 2.3 billion globally.
- Successfully launched news streaming service, CNN Max, in the US, on September 27th, ahead of the October 5th launch of the Bleacher Report Sports Add-On tier.