The participations of the Arena group (AREN) – Get the report from The Arena Group Holdings Inc.the New York-based, tech-focused publisher of Sports Illustrated, TheStreet, Parade and more, reported second-quarter gross profit nearly doubled on revenue up 87%.
Digital ad revenue more than doubled, “thanks to an 82% improvement in traffic and more than 40% growth in display [cost per thousand impressions]”, the company said in a statement.
“Arena Group continues to deliver robust revenue growth and bottom line improvements,” Chief Executive Officer Ross Levinsohn said in the statement. “Growth was achieved in our three main verticals – Sports, Finance and Lifestyle. We have outperformed our competitors in terms of digital ad revenue and audience growth.
“Our improved playbook and performance drove a 114% year-over-year increase in digital advertising revenue as our properties increasingly reach coveted consumers at scale and our overall audience grew. increased by 82% year over year, according to Google Analytics.”
Arena Group’s gross profit reached $18.3 million from $9.4 million, up 94%. Total second quarter revenue was $65.1 million compared to $34.7 million a year earlier. Digital advertising revenue totaled $24.7 million from $11.5 million a year earlier.
The company generated $5.8 million in net cash from operations, compared to net cash used of $8.4 million in the prior quarter.
Arena Group’s sports vertical is anchored by Sports Illustrated and features local team site brands FanNation, The Spun and Sports Illustrated Media Group partners. The vertical sector more than doubled the average number of monthly page views (up 174% over the previous year). And the average monthly number of page views related to sports betting almost doubled (up to 93%), according to Google Analytics.
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The average monthly number of pages viewed in the financial sector in the second quarter more than doubled (up 157%) compared to the previous year and increased by 21% compared to the first quarter.
Every month, the financial industry reaches an average of nearly 30 million online consumers, according to Google Analytics. TheStreet’s Facebook engagement in Q2 tripled (up 205%) from a year earlier, according to ListenFirst.
The lifestyle vertical is anchored by Parade, which Arena Group acquired in April and migrated to its technology infrastructure in July. The group is already improving its viewership and CPMs, the company said.
And within Arena Group’s HubPages division, pet brand PetHelpful “continues to show rapid growth,” with average monthly page views up sevenfold to 42 million.
“Our highly effective platform and proven ability to produce relevant content that engages consumers has enabled us to successfully address the high-profile advertising challenges of the industry related to a slowing economy,” said said Levinsohn.
“Continued growth in partners, traffic, data and impressions allows us to deliver compelling returns to advertisers.”
Arena Group’s second-quarter net loss widened to $22.2 million from $20.7 million in the prior quarter. The losses include $14.9 million and $11.1 million of non-cash charges, respectively. The charges primarily relate to stock-based compensation and depreciation and amortization, partially offset by deferred income taxes, the company said.
