After another disappointing quarterly earnings report, audio content provider Audacy saw its stock drop to below 30 cents per share Tuesday and its chief financial officer addressed speculation that it might need to file for chapter 11 protection, the Philadelphia Business Journal reported. Audacy Chairman and CEO David Field said that market conditions were “worse than our expectations,” as the Philadelphia-based company reported an operating loss of $152 million in the third quarter, a swing from a $29 million operating profit in the same period of 2021. The company suffered a $141 million net loss, compared to a $4.7 million loss in the same period of 2021. Adjusted EBITDA was down to $36 million from $49 million. As he did in the second quarter, Field noted that the macroeconomic issues plaguing the company have come during a period of transition, as Audacy has been attempting to morph from a radio company into one focused on broader audio products and services. That has taken significant investment through the acquisition of podcast studios, advertising technology and new talent. Even though Audacy has built those new capabilities, Field said it is still not reaping a large portion of the revenue benefits. Field described the quarter as challenging, “with market conditions worse than our expectations impacting performance across our various channels.” Revenues were down 4% compared to the same period of 2021. Radio revenue was down 6% and digital revenue up 2%. While the company cited double-digit growth in revenue for streaming audio and digital marketing solutions, podcasting revenue declined in 3Q by 23%. Field said the podcasting business was adversely impacted by the departure of Crooked Media, which left Audacy's podcast platform in May.
