LBG Media shares fell over 5 per cent on Wednesday after the LADbible owner revealed weaker profitability in its Australian arm.
The group told investors it expects to report full-year earnings before nasties of £15.7million, reflecting growth of 8 per cent year-on-year, weighed by a roughly £3million fall in the profitability of its Australian arm.
LBG Media said that without the Australian slump it would have expected to post underlying adjusted earnings before nasties growth of ‘over 30 per cent’ year-on-year.
But LBG Media shares fell 5.87 per cent or 5.14p to 82.46p on Wednesday, having slipped around 2 per cent annually.
Update: LADbible owner LBG Media expects revenues to rise this year
The group still expects revenue to rise by year-end amid higher audience levels and a strong performance in the UK, US and Irish markets.
It forecasts revenues to reach £67million for the year, up 6.6 per cent on last year, and claimed it had ‘further deepened its market leadership position#.
The group said its UK and Ireland businesses were performing strongly, with high conversion rates and a ‘significant’ roster of new and growing clients.
LBG said: ‘In Australia we have implemented a number of positive changes to make the operating model more efficient from January 2024.’
The group added that LADbible now had over 440million followers, up from 410million at the half-year stage.
October’s acquisition of women’s media brand Betches Media for $24million is expected to help the company carve out a position in the US market, it added.
Looking ahead, the firm said: ‘The board remains confident in the growth outlook for 2024, supported by the progression of our US ambitions with Betches Media, realising the benefits of our new operating model in Australia as well as the opportunities represented by key advertising moments such as Euro 2024 and the Olympics.’
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