Thunderbird Entertainment Group Inc (TSX-V:TBRD, OTCQX:THBRF) has reported a surge in revenue for the quarter and year ended June 30, 2022.
The company said quarterly consolidated revenue increased by $18.0 million (69%) from the year-ago period to $44.1 million while annual consolidated revenue rose by $37.5 million (34%) to $149.0 million.
“The increase in revenue in the current quarter is due primarily to the continued growth in production services,” the company said.
Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) increased by $0.1 million to $2.4 million and $0.5 million to $20.1 million for the three months and the year ended June 30, 2022, respectively.
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The Vancouver-based company said gross margin percentage in the current quarter and the full year decreased due to the timing of intellectual properties deliveries, changes in production services scheduling and the increased investment in production talent. Adjusted EBITDA was relatively flat over both periods due to the company investing in key new hires and software and technology upgrades to deliver industry-leading, quality programming to further facilitate long-term growth.
Free cash flow decreased by $5.5 million in the current quarter primarily due to an increase in investment in content as the company ramps up production volume but increased by $1.6 million to $13.9 million for the year ended June 30, 2022, due to the timing of the receipt and repayment of interim production financing net of the ramp-up of production volume.
"In fiscal 2022, Thunderbird invested in long-term, sustainable growth," Jennifer Twiner McCarron, Thunderbird's CEO said in a statement.
"We are pleased with our performance and progress during this build year. Thunderbird remains a top content provider to all major buyers with a demonstrated ability to deliver top-quality content. We have numerous projects coming up through our robust development pipeline and look forward to sharing more company updates as we continue our journey to become the next big global studio."
The company’s corporate highlights during the year include:
- At June 30, 2022, the company had 28 programs in various stages of production. Of those programs in production, eight were Thunderbird IP, and 20 were service productions. Two of the service productions were partner-managed, which are fully funded by the partner, but entirely managed by Thunderbird. As a result, Thunderbird is entitled to receive a percentage of the net profits from merchandise and licensing.
- Following its October premiere, Oddballs, a new animated, partner-managed Atomic production produced with YouTube creator James Rallison, debuted at number one on Netflix Kids Top 10, and ranked as the #6 TV series globally - adult content included - during the week of October 10-16. The series had 11.9 million viewing hours during this week, which doesn't include the first three days from its premiere.
- Subsequent to June 30, Princess Power, a partner-managed production for Netflix that Atomic developed with Allison Oppenheim, Savannah Guthrie and Drew Barrymore's Flower Films, was announced to debut in early 2023. Atomic optioned and developed this production before Netflix acquired the series.
- Thunderbird was also in production on Season 2 of the scripted series Strays, which premiered on CBC and CBC Gem in September 2022. The scripted series Reginald the Vampire, featuring Spiderman breakout star Jacob Batalon, debuted on SyFy (US) and Amazon Prime Video (Canada) in October.
- Thunderbird's distribution team acquired and is currently selling, global media and consumer product rights to the new preschool series, Mittens & Pants, which will debut on CBC and CBC Gem in Canada, and in the UK on Sky Kids in the late fall of 2022.
Thunderbird is a global award-winning, full-service multiplatform production, distribution and rights management company, headquartered in Vancouver, with additional offices in Los Angeles, Toronto, and Ottawa. Thunderbird creates award-winning scripted, unscripted, and animated programming for the world's leading digital platforms, as well as Canadian and international broadcasters.
Contact the author at jon.hopkins@proactiveinvestors.com