Comscore Reports Third Quarter 2018 Results

Comscore Reports Third Quarter 2018 ResultsRESTON, VA., Nov. 8, 2018 - Comscore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR), a trusted partner for planning, transacting, and evaluating media across platforms, today reported financial results for the third quarter of 2018, ended September 30, 2018.

Financial and Operational Highlights

Total year-over-year revenue growth of 2.5%, driven by TV and cross-platform growth of 25%.

Gross profit improvement, reflecting relatively flat costs on increased revenue.

SG&A costs of $43.6 million, or 42% of revenue, compared to $52.2 million, or 52% of revenue in the year-ago quarter.

GAAP net loss of $24.6 million, or $(0.42) per share, compared to $130.1 million, or $(2.26) per share in the year-ago quarter.

Adjusted EBITDA of $5.2 million, compared to an adjusted EBITDA loss of $5.0 million in the year-ago quarter.

Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash of $54.2 million, compared to $45.1 million as of December 31, 2017.

Comscore to host Investor Day on November 13 in New York.

"We are pleased with our performance and progress on our strategic initiatives during the third quarter. We drove revenue growth and made significant progress in streamlining our cost structure, as evidenced by our third straight quarter of positive adjusted EBITDA," said Bryan Wiener, CEO of Comscore. "Fundamental changes in the media ecosystem require a modern measurement partner to help businesses transact media with confidence. We believe our strategic plan positions us to be that trusted partner for today and in the future.

Summary Results

Total revenue in the third quarter of 2018 was $102.9 million, up from $100.3 million in the year-ago quarter. The third quarter financials reflect the three new categories in which Comscore will analyze customers and revenue moving forward. These new categories better reflect solution groups that address customer needs.

Ratings and Planning revenue is composed of revenue from digital, TV and cross-platform products. Ratings and Planning revenue increased to $70.5 million in the third quarter, compared to $69.5 million in the year-ago quarter. The increase was primarily from TV products due to increases in existing customer contract values. This was offset by lower revenues in digital products that continued to be negatively impacted by ongoing industry changes in ad buying and consolidation.

Analytics and Optimization revenue increased to $22.2 million in the third quarter, compared to $21.2 million in the year-ago quarter. Revenue increased primarily due to increases in emerging products (including activation), partially offset by lower revenue from digital custom offerings.

Movies Reporting and Analytics revenue increased to $10.2 million in the third quarter, compared to $9.7 million in the year-ago quarter. Revenue increased as the company's global footprint remained strong and products continued to result in higher contract pricing.

GAAP net loss for the third quarter of 2018 was $24.6 million, or $(0.42) per share, compared to $130.1 million, or $(2.26) per share reported in the year-ago quarter. The improvement was driven primarily by an $81.8 million non-recurring legal settlement in the year-ago quarter, as well as continued cost discipline in selling and marketing, research and development, and G&A, and a decrease in investigation and audit-related costs.

For the third quarter of 2018, Comscore generated non-GAAP adjusted EBITDA of $5.2 million, which includes a larger than normal $1.6 million payment received from a prior-year patent settlement and excludes stock-based compensation expense, change in fair value of financing derivatives, and other items as presented in the accompanying tables. This compares to an adjusted EBITDA loss of $5.0 million in the year-ago quarter.

Balance Sheet and Liquidity

As of September 30, 2018, total debt principal, composed of senior secured convertible notes, was $202.0 million. Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at the end of the third quarter were $54.2 million, including $6.3 million in restricted cash.

Business Outlook

In the fourth quarter of 2018, Comscore expects revenue to increase modestly and adjusted EBITDA to be positive for the fourth straight quarter and at the lower end of the range of the first three quarters of 2018, excluding the $1.6 million patent payment received in the third quarter. Looking forward, management is focused on streamlining the company's cost structure to fund critical investments in product development and drive revenue growth in 2019 and beyond.

Comscore plans to provide 2019 and multi-year financial guidance at its Investor Day hosted on November 13th in NYC and live streamed on ir.comscore.com/events-presentations. Presentation materials and an archived replay will be available for approximately 90 days following the event at the same link.

Conference Call Information for Today, Thursday, November 8 at 5:00 p.m. ET:

Management will provide commentary on the companys results in a conference call today at 5:00 p.m. ET. To access this call, dial 1 844-229-7593 (domestic) or 1 314-888-4258 (international) and reference conference ID #2195848. Participants are advised to dial in at least 10 minutes prior to the call to register. Additionally, a live webcast of the conference call will be available on the Investor Relations section of the companys website at ir.comscore.com/events-presentations. Following the conference call, a replay will be available by dialing 1 855-859-2056 (domestic) or 1 404-537-3406 (international) with passcode #2195848. The replay will also be available via webcast at ir.comscore.com/events-presentations.

LINK:	https://www.comscore.com/Insights/Press-Releases/2018/11/Comscore-Repo...
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