AMC Networks reported fourth quarter revenue of $599 million, down 12 percent from the same period a year ago, and adjusted earnings per share of 64 cents down from 72 cents.
Both numbers missed Wall Street earnings expectations.
In its domestic operations unit, AMC Networks said subscription revenue fell 4 percent to $314 million in the fourth-quarter as the company cited declines in linear subscribers, partially offset by streaming revenue growth. Streaming revenues increased 8 percent to $156 million due to year-over-year subscriber growth and price increases.
The company’s total streaming subscribers reached 12.4 million at the end of 2024, including subscribers to AMC+, Acorn TV, Shudder, Sundance Now, ALLBLK and HIDIVE, up from 11.4 million subscribers a year ago.
AMC Networks took a $268.7 million goodwill impairment charge on its domestic operations reporting unit, due to “continued softness in the domestic linear marketplace and across the International television broadcasting markets, resulting in lower expected future cash flows, as well as a decrease in the valuation multiples.”
In total, AMC Networks took $399.5 million in impairment and other charges, which also included the , $102 million charge for international division AMCNI and $29.2 million for long-lived asset impairment charges at BBC America, which AMC Networks acquired in November.
In the fourth quarter, advertising revenues fell 12 percent to $139 million due to declines in linear ratings and “a challenging entertainment advertising marketplace, partially offset by digital and advanced advertising revenue growth.”
Additionally, the company reported an operating loss of $254 million, which included impairment and other charges of $303 million and restructuring and other related charges of $43 million, after an operating loss of $11.4 million in the year-earlier period.
For 2025, the company said it expects to generate cumulative free cash flow of approximately $550 million by the end of 2025.
Total consolidated revenue is expected to fall 5 percent to about $2.3 billion. As part of that, the company expects 2025 subscription revenue to be flat due to liner subscriber headwinds. Streaming growth is expected to grow in the low-to-mid teen percentage area, with executives citing “a lot of price action,” while 2025 domestic advertising revenue is expected to decline 10 percent compared to 2025.
While the company’s cash spend was less than guided to in 2024, and AMC Networks’ guidance implied more decreases in 2025, Patrick O’Connell, executive vice president and chief financial officer at AMC, said the company has not pulled back on programming but has found a way to do it more “efficiently.” AMC Networks CEO Kristin Dolan noted that with shows such as The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, the company has been able to film in Spain or France and get tax credits. Other shows are shooting in Canada and Ireland, she said.
There are expected to be “modest reductions in volume, but not not anything dramatic,” in terms of programming next year, O’Connell said.
“This is us just being prudent. We’re able to produce on a per episode basis a little bit better than we expected. We’ve got fantastic people internally who are taking advantage of all the tools available to produce efficiently. So we’ve been the beneficiary of that. And you know, we have also instituted a program where we’re sharing more content across channels, platforms, etc, that’s allowed us to sort of program the broader company a bit more efficiently. But we obviously remain committed to similar levels of cash programming spend going forward,” O’Connell said.
“We are pleased and encouraged by our results in the fourth quarter and across all of 2024. We achieved our full-year guidance across all key financial metrics, including generating healthy free cash flow of $331 million,” AMC Networks CEO Kristin Dolan said.
Dolan added, “Our free cash flow performance to date has been strong and we are increasing our expectations to approximately $550 million of cumulative free cash flow over the ’24/’25 two-year period. We forged and expanded innovative partnerships that are helping to drive our company forward amidst a period of change that is challenging all media companies. In addition, we continued to delight fans by delivering high-quality and distinctive shows and films across our own targeted offerings as well as an array of partner platforms, and to expand our targeting capabilities to differentiate our advertising business.”