WMG witness strong growth in Q2/2019 thanks to releases by Cardi B, Ed Sheeran

Acknowledging the popular releases by Cardi B, Ed Sheeran, Meek Mill, K-Pop group TWICE and the “The Greatest Showman” soundtrack, Warner Music Group (WMG) had a strong Q2.

WMG’s total quarterly recorded music revenues hit $933 million in the three months to end of March with an impressive year-on-year growth driven by streaming.

Table 1_0

For the three months ended March 31st, 2019, WMG reported $1.09 billion in revenue. This figure represents a 13% jump over the same period last year. In addition, for the six months ended March 31st, 2019 (fiscal Q1 and Q2 2019), the major label reported $2.3 billion in revenue, up 14% over the same period last year.

Recorded music revenue grew 18%, or $142 million, in Q2 2019. In addition, WMG’s streaming revenue during this quarter jumped 29.4% to $537 million.

Table 2

“Our second-quarter results were strong,” said Steve Cooper, Warner Music Group’s CEO. “Our sustained investment in our artists and songwriters, our artist services business and our world-class operators, are delivering great results.”

WMG’s publishing revenue for Q2/2019

Publishing, however, saw a small decline to the tune of $16 million or 9.2 percent. Warner/Chappell saw lower activity in synchs, according to the report, and was also impacted by lower performance and mechanical revenue due to the ongoing shift to streaming as well as less of admin rights of certain catalogs, which the report does not specify.
Adjusted operating income increased 16% to $130 million in Q2 2019. For the six months ended March 31st, 2019, adjusted operating income totaled $284 million, up 32% year-over-year.

“Revenue and OIBDA were both up double-digits,” added Eric Levin, Warner Music Group’s Executive Vice President and CFO. “Our cash position remains strong, with $470 million on the balance sheet at quarter-end.”

WMG’s operating income was $122 million compared to $83 million in the prior-year quarter. OIBDA was $191 million, up 25.7% from $152 million in the prior-year quarter. The OIBDA margin increased 1.7 percentage points to 17.5% from 15.8% in the prior-year quarter.

Net income was $67 million compared to a net loss of $1 million in the prior-year quarter. The adjusted net income was $75 million compared to $28 million in the prior-year quarter.