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NAPLES — Beasley Broadcast Group reported a big profit jump after recording a significant gain from the exchange of stations with CBS Radio.
On Dec. 1, Beasley exchanged five radio stations in the Philadelphia and Miami-Fort Lauderdale markets for a total of 14 CBS Radio stations in the Tampa-St. Petersburg, Charlotte and Philadelphia markets. The radio broadcasting company now owns and operates 53 stations (34 FM and 19 AM) located in 12 large- and mid-size markets.
As a result, Beasley posted net income of $33.8 million on revenues of $26.7 million in the fourth quarter because it recorded a $54.3 million pre-tax gain on the exchange. That compares with net income of $3.6 million on revenues of $27.3 million in the fourth quarter of 2013.
“On a reported basis, fourth quarter net revenue from continuing operations rose 23.5% and station operating income increased 14.6%, while operating income of $1.8 million was impacted by $1.7 million of transaction and termination expenses related to the asset exchange and otherwise would have compared favorably with the $2.8 million in the comparable year ago period,” says George Beasley, chairman CEO, in a statement. “However, given the required accounting treatment for discontinued operations, the results include only one month of operations from the stations we received in the asset exchange, while excluding the results of the stations we gave up in the transaction.”
Beasley says the outlook for the newly acquired stations is positive. “The six station cluster we now operate in Tampa-St. Petersburg is already competitive on a revenue share basis, and we have initiated several strategies to capitalize on the significant upside in this cluster,” Beasley says.
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