HOUSTON, Oct. 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — Direct Digital Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq: DRCT) (“Direct Digital Holdings” or the “Company”), a leading advertising and marketing technology platform operating through its companies Colossus Media, LLC (“Colossus SSP”), Huddled Masses LLC (“Huddled Masses”) and Orange142, LLC (“Orange142”), today announced that the Company appointed Diana Diaz, who had been serving as the Company’s interim Chief Financial Officer, as permanent Chief Financial Officer, effective October 16, 2023.
Ms. Diaz served as interim Chief Financial Officer of Direct Digital Holdings beginning June 5, 2023. As permanent Chief Financial Officer, she will continue to lead the Company’s finance, accounting and treasury organization and report directly to the Company’s Chief Executive Officer.
Mark D. Walker, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, commented, “We are grateful for the hard work and dedication Diana has provided our team over the past several months and greatly excited to appoint her as our permanent Chief Financial Officer. She has been a trusted partner and an excellent leader of our finance division. With the help of her leadership and financial acumen, we are now more confident than ever in our team’s ability to execute our various strategies for growth in the coming months and years.”
Ms. Diaz joined the Company from Sharps Compliance Corp. (previously Nasdaq listed (SMED)) until its acquisition, a leading national healthcare waste management provider to customers in multiple healthcare-related markets, specializing in regulated waste streams including medical, pharmaceutical and hazardous, where she served for a total of 13 years, including as Vice President and Chief Financial Officer from June 2010 to February 2022. Ms. Diaz’s prior positions include Chief Financial Officer of University General Hospital in Houston, Texas from September 2006 to May 2009, Controller at Memorial Hermann Healthcare System, Texas Medical Center from September 2002 to August 2006 and Controller of the wholesale group at Reliant Energy from July 1998 to May 2002. Ms. Diaz received her BBA in Accounting from The University of Texas at Austin and her MBA from Rice University’s Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Management.
Ms. Diaz said of her appointment, “This is a very exciting time to have joined Direct Digital Holdings. As Chief Financial Officer, I will continue to work closely with my fellow executive team members to capitalize on the Company’s strategic position and current favorable market dynamics to continue our growth. I am grateful for this appointment and look forward to continuing my work with this incredible team.”
Forward Looking Statements
This press release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of federal securities laws, including the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and which are subject to certain risks, trends and uncertainties.
As used below, “we,” “us,” and “our” refer to the Company. We use words such as “could,” “would,” “may,” “might,” “will,” “expect,” “likely,” “believe,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “project” and other similar expressions to identify forward-looking statements, but not all forward-looking statements include these words. All statements contained in this press release that do not relate to matters of historical fact should be considered forward-looking statements.
All of our forward-looking statements involve estimates and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by the forward-looking statements. Our forward-looking statements are based on assumptions that we have made in light of our industry experience and our perceptions of historical trends, current conditions, expected future developments and other factors we believe are appropriate under the circumstances. Although we believe that these forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, many factors could affect our actual operating and financial performance and cause our performance to differ materially from the performance expressed in or implied by the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to: our dependence on the overall demand for advertising, which could be influenced by economic downturns; any slow-down or unanticipated development in the market for programmatic advertising campaigns; the effects of health epidemics; operational and performance issues with our platform, whether real or perceived, including a failure to respond to technological changes or to upgrade our technology systems; any significant inadvertent disclosure or breach of confidential and/or personal information we hold, or of the security of our or our customers’, suppliers’ or other partners’ computer systems; any unavailability or non-performance of the non-proprietary technology, software, products and services that we use; unfavorable publicity and negative public perception about our industry, particularly concerns regarding data privacy and security relating to our industry’s technology and practices, and any perceived failure to comply with laws and industry self-regulation; restrictions on the use of third-party “cookies,” mobile device IDs or other tracking technologies, which could diminish our platform’s effectiveness; any inability to compete in our intensely competitive market; any significant fluctuations caused by our high customer concentration; our limited operating history, which could result in our past results not being indicative of future operating performance; any violation of legal and regulatory requirements or any misconduct by our employees, subcontractors, agents or business partners; any strain on our resources, diversion of our management’s attention or impact on our ability to attract and retain qualified board members as a result of being a public company; our dependence, as a holding company, on receiving distributions from Direct Digital Holdings, LLC to pay our taxes, expenses and dividends; and other factors and assumptions discussed in the “Risk Factors,” “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Conditions and Results of Operations” and other sections of our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission that we make from time to time. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize or should any of these assumptions prove to be incorrect, our actual operating and financial performance may vary in material respects from the performance projected in these forward-looking statements. Further, any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made, and except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement contained in this press release to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which it is made or to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events or circumstances, and we claim the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
About Direct Digital Holdings Direct Digital Holdings (Nasdaq: DRCT), owner of operating companies Colossus SSP, Huddled Masses, and Orange 142, brings state-of-the-art sell- and buy-side advertising platforms together under one umbrella company. Direct Digital Holdings’ sell-side platform, Colossus SSP, offers advertisers of all sizes extensive reach within general market and multicultural media properties. The Company’s subsidiaries Huddled Masses and Orange142 deliver significant ROI for middle market advertisers by providing data-optimized programmatic solutions at scale for businesses in sectors that range from energy to healthcare to travel to financial services. Direct Digital Holdings’ sell- and buy-side solutions manage on average over 136,000 clients monthly, generating approximately 250 billion impressions per month across display, CTV, in-app and other media channels.
Interim appointment of seasoned executive supports the growth-phase strategic plan launched earlier this year
CHELMSFORD, MA / ACCESSWIRE / October 16, 2023 / Harte Hanks, Inc. (NASDAQ:HHS), a leading global customer experience company focused on bringing companies closer to customers for 100 years, today announced the appointment of David Garrison, an experienced finance executive with more than 20 years of public company CFO experience, as Interim Chief Financial Officer, effective October 23, 2023. Lauri Kearnes is stepping down as CFO but will continue to advise the Company as needed through year end to support a smooth transition. Kearnes’ departure is not related to any disagreement with the Company on any matter relating to the Company’s operations, policies, or practices.
Garrison brings 20 years of public company CFO experience, with particular expertise in cost containment, streamlining operations, and ERP implementations. He joins Harte Hanks from Digital Lumens Incorporated, an IoT lighting fixture and factory automation technology company that was spun out of Osram Sylvania, where he served as CFO for the last two years. As part of this role, he was instrumental in selling a product line to a strategic buyer and selling the remaining operating entity to a foreign company. Previously, he spent three years as Chief Financial Officer for Sensera, Inc., an Australian listed medical and IoT technology company, where he played an important role in turning around operations to facilitate a sale. Previously, he served as Managing Director of IW Ventures LLC, a financial consultant, and TTcogen LLC, a joint venture between Tecogen Inc. and TEDOM a.s. From 2014 to 2017, Garrison served as CFO of Tecogen Inc., a NASDAQ-listed company that designs, manufactures, and sells industrial and commercial cogeneration systems, where he supported growth with cost controls to drive margin expansion and profitability. He has an MBA from Boston University and has led several Greater Boston-based companies through successful growth-driven integrations, transactions, and implementations.
“Lauri has been a valued, long-standing member of our team and we appreciate all of her contributions as Harte Hanks has evolved over the years,” said Kirk Davis, Chief Executive Officer. “She played an instrumental role in providing the company with stability through restructuring and implementing a foundation for profitable growth. David is a proven financial and operational leader who will help advance the next phase of our comprehensive business plan. He brings a deep background in all facets of SEC reporting, compliance, and governance. Importantly, he brings specific and relevant expertise in information technologies and integration, data analytics, customer satisfaction, and expense management.”
Harte Hanks has already initiated a formal search process to select a permanent Chief Financial Officer to advance the company’s current growth plans and new market goals. Garrison’s interim appointment supports the strategic direction and growth-phase plan launched earlier this year after Harte Hanks celebrated its 100-year anniversary. The plan, which kicked off with the appointment of industry-veteran Kirk Davis as new CEO, is strategically designed to help Harte Hanks continue to adapt, change, and modernize, as it has done successfully for a century in business.
The company’s strategic plan includes a collaboration with the Kearney organization, a highly respected global management consulting firm. “I’ve had previous experience working with Kearney and am confident in their ability to help us mitigate inflation, benefit from their excellence in procurement and for our team to gain a deeper understanding of our profit potential,” said Davis. “Our engagement with Kearney is underway and will conclude before year end. The goal is to achieve the flexibility to not only drive profitability, but also make strategic investments that will support growth and further our technical aptitude.”
The company has also hired a new SVP of Sales and Marketing, with a formal announcement on this role to occur later this month.
“Having just completed my first full quarter with Harte Hanks, I am confident these actions will support our ambitions to have a strong 2024,” said Davis. Davis also noted that he remains comfortable with the most recently disclosed revenue baseline for fiscal 2023.
“Harte Hanks has a proud heritage, and the momentum we have right now is a very positive sign for our next 100 years,” continued CEO Kirk Davis. “We have a highly capable team in place, including many key long-term members of our management team and a creative, smart, motivated group of employees across all departments. We are very enthusiastic about the future and see profitable opportunities ahead for Harte Hanks.”
About Harte Hanks:
Harte Hanks (NASDAQ: HHS) is a leading global customer experience company whose mission is to partner with clients to provide them with CX strategy, data-driven analytics and actionable insights combined with seamless program execution to better understand, attract and engage their customers.
Using its unparalleled resources and award-winning talent in the areas of Customer Care, Fulfillment and Logistics, and Marketing Services, Harte Hanks has a proven track record of driving results for some of the world’s premier brands, including Bank of America, GlaxoSmithKline, Unilever, Pfizer, HBOMax, Volvo, Ford, FedEx, Midea, Sony and IBM among others. Headquartered in Chelmsford, Massachusetts, Harte Hanks has over 2,500 employees in offices across the Americas, Europe, and Asia Pacific.
As used herein, “Harte Hanks” or “the Company” refers to Harte Hanks, Inc. and/or its applicable operating subsidiaries, as the context may require. Harte Hanks’ logo and name are trademarks of Harte Hanks.
Our press release and related earnings conference call contain “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of U.S. federal securities laws. All such statements are qualified by this cautionary note, provided pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Statements other than historical facts are forward-looking and may be identified by words such as “may,” “will,” “expects,” “believes,” “anticipates,” “plans,” “estimates,” “seeks,” “could,” “intends,” or words of similar meaning. These forward-looking statements are based on current information, expectations and estimates and involve risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors that are difficult to predict and that could cause actual results to vary materially from what is expressed in or indicated by the forward-looking statements. In that event, our business, financial condition, results of operations or liquidity could be materially adversely affected and investors in our securities could lose part or all of their investments. These risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors include: (a) local, national and international economic and business conditions, including (i) the outbreak of diseases, such as the COVID-19 coronavirus, which has curtailed travel to and from certain countries and geographic regions, created supply chain disruption and shortages, disrupted business operations and reduced consumer spending, (ii) market conditions that may adversely impact marketing expenditures, (iii) the impact of the Russia/Ukraine conflict on the global economy and our business, including impacts from related sanctions and export controls and (iv) the impact of economic environments and competitive pressures on the financial condition, marketing expenditures and activities of our clients and prospects; (b) the demand for our products and services by clients and prospective clients, including (i) the willingness of existing clients to maintain or increase their spending on products and services that are or remain profitable for us, and (ii) our ability to predict changes in client needs and preferences; (c) economic and other business factors that impact the industry verticals we serve, including competition and consolidation of current and prospective clients, vendors and partners in these verticals; (d) our ability to manage and timely adjust our facilities, capacity, workforce and cost structure to effectively serve our clients; (e) our ability to improve our processes and to provide new products and services in a timely and cost-effective manner though development, license, partnership or acquisition; (f) our ability to protect our facilities against security breaches and other interruptions and to protect sensitive personal information of our clients and their customers; (g) our ability to respond to increasing concern, regulation and legal action over consumer privacy issues, including changing requirements for collection, processing and use of information; (h) the impact of privacy and other regulations, including restrictions on unsolicited marketing communications and other consumer protection laws; (i) fluctuations in fuel prices, paper prices, postal rates and postal delivery schedules; (j) the number of shares, if any, that we may repurchase in connection with our repurchase program; (k) unanticipated developments regarding litigation or other contingent liabilities; (l) our ability to complete anticipated divestitures and reorganizations, including cost-saving initiatives; (m) our ability to realize the expected tax refunds; and (n) other factors discussed from time to time in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including under “Item 1A. Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022 which was filed on March 31, 2023. The forward-looking statements in this press release and our related earnings conference call are made only as of the date hereof, and we undertake no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statement, even if new information becomes available or other events occur in the future.
Investor Relations Contact:
Rob Fink or Tom Baumann 646.809.4048 / 646.349.6641 FNK IR HHS@fnkir.com
Michael Kupinski, Director of Research, Noble Capital Markets, Inc.
Jacob Mutchler, Research Associate, Noble Capital Markets, Inc.
Refer to the bottom of the report for important disclosures
Overview: A new small-cap cycle?Small cap stocks have underperformed the large cap stocks for the past several years. Notably, there is a sizable valuation disparity between the two classes, one of the largest in over 20 years. Some of the small cap stocks we follow trade at a modest 2 times Enterprise Value to EBITDA, compared with large cap valuations as high as 13 to 15 times. Are we on a cusp of a small cap cycle?
Digital Media & Technology:Stocks Outperform – But Don’t Get Too Excited. Each of Noble’s Internet and Digital Media Indices, which are market cap weighted, outperformed the S&P 500 in the third quarter, but the double-digit gains from the previous quarter moderated significantly. Despite these relatively positive results, the prevailing theme within each sector was that the largest cap stocks performed the best, while smaller cap stocks across a variety of sectors struggled.
Television Broadcasting:Advertising Stabilizing?As we look toward the third quarter, local advertising appears to be weakening as the economy appears to be slowing. But, national appears to be improving. In addition, while it was assumed that Political would increase in the fourth quarter due to the run-off of the Republican presidential candidates, we believe that President Biden has recently stepped-up advertising in the third quarter, particularly in Hispanic communities.
Radio Broadcasting:Shoring up balance sheets.As many radio companies face a challenged revenue environment and at the same time invested in faster growth digital revenue, some companies have been caught carrying a substantial amount of debt. In this report, we highlight one company that was able to shore up its balance sheet through asset sales.
Publishing:Stocks outperform. It may be hard to imagine for some investors, but the Publishing stocks outperformed in both the latest quarter and for the trailing 12 months the S&P 500! But, there is still a wide valuation gap between most of Publishers and the shares of The New York Times, with the NYT shares at 15 times cash flow and the rest near 5.
Overview
The case for small caps
Small cap investors have gone through a rough period. For the past several years, investors have anticipated an economic downturn. With these concerns, investors turned toward “safe haven” large cap stocks, which typically have the ability to weather the economic headwinds and have enough trading volume should investors need to exit the position. Since 2018, small cap stocks have underperformed the general stock market, with annualized returns of just 3.7% as measured by the S&P 600 Small Cap Index versus the general market of 10.2% as measured by the S&P 500 Index. Another small cap index, the Russell 2000, increased a more modest 2.9% annually over the comparable period. The S&P 500 is larger cap, with the minimum market cap of $14.6 billion. The S&P 600 is smaller cap, a range of $850 million to $3.7 billion, with the Russell 2000 median market cap $950 million. Some of the even smaller cap stocks, those between $100 million to $850 million, have significantly underperformed the S&P 600. This is the first time that small caps underperformed a bullish period for all stocks since the 1940s. Notably, there is a sizable valuation disparity between the two classes, large and small cap, one of the largest in over 20 years.
Some of the small cap stocks we follow trade at a modest 2 times Enterprise Value to EBITDA, compared with large cap valuations as high as 13 to 15 times. By another measure, small cap stocks may be the only class trading below historic 25 year average to the median Enterprise Value to EBIT. Why the large valuation disparity? We believe that there is higher risk in the small cap stocks, especially given that some companies may not be cash flow positive, have capital needs, or have limited share float. But, investors seem to have thrown the baby out with the bathwater. While those small cap stocks are on the more speculative end of the scale, many small cap stocks are growing revenues and cash flow, have capable balance sheets, and/or are cash flow positive. For attractive emerging growth companies, the trading activity will resolve itself over time. Some market strategists suggest that small cap stocks trade at the most undervalued in the market, as much as a 30% to 40% discount to fair value.
Are we on a cusp of a small cap cycle? Some fund managers think so. Such a cycle could last 10 years or longer. In this report, we highlight a few of our small cap favorites in the Media sector, those include companies that have attractive growth characteristics, some with or without an improving economy, capable balance sheets, and limited capital needs. Our current favorites based on growth opportunity and stock valuation include: Direct Digital (DRCT), Entravision (EVC), E.W. Scripps (SSP), Gray Television (GTN), and Townsquare Media (TSQ).
After increasing by 8% in the second quarter of 2023, the S&P 500 was unable to hold onto those gains in the third quarter. The S&P Index decreased by 3.6% in the third quarter, a decline which we attribute to the market revising its interest rate expectations to one in which rates would remain “higher for longer”. Large cap stocks that weighed on the broad market index included tech stocks such as Apple (AAPL: -12%), Microsoft (MSFT: -7%) and Tesla (TSLA: -4%). Despite this small step backwards, the S&P 500 Index increased by 20% through the first nine months of the year.
Each of Noble’s Internet and Digital Media Indices, which are market cap weighted, outperformed the S&P 500 in the third quarter, but the double-digit gains from the previous quarter (2Q 2023) moderated significantly. Digital Media 3-Month Performance Sectors that outperformed the S&P 500’s 4% decrease include Noble’s Digital Media Index (+6%), Social Media Index (+4%), Gaming Index (+3%), Ad Tech Index (+1%) and MarTech Index (-3%). Despite these relatively positive results, the prevailing theme within each sector was that the largest cap stocks performed the best while smaller cap stocks across a variety of sectors struggled.
Figure #1 Digital Media 3-Month Performance
Source: Capital IQ
Perhaps more importantly, each of Noble’s Internet and Digital Media Indices have outperformed the S&P 500 over the latest twelve months as illustrated in Figure #2 Digital Versus S&P 500 LTM. The S&P 500 Index has increased by 20% over the last year (through 9/30/2023), which trailed the performance of the each of Noble’s Internet and Digital Media Indices, as shown in Figure #3 Digital Media LTM Performance.
Figure #2 Digital Versus S&P 500 LTM
Figure #3 Digital Media LTM Performance
Source: Capital IQ
Alphabet Powers Digital Media Index Higher Despite Broader-Based Sector Weakness
The best performing index during the quarter was the Noble’s Digital Media Index, but the sector’s “strong” performance is deceiving. Shares of Alphabet (a.k.a. Google: GOOGL) increased by 9% during the quarter, and the company size relative to its peers helps explain the vast majority of the sector’s performance. Google’s market cap is 8x larger than its next largest “peer” in Netflix, and it is 160 times that of the average market cap of its Digital Media peers. Google beat expectations across all metrics (revenue, EBITDA, free cash flow) and guided to improved profitability as it streamlines workflows. The company is also increasingly perceived as a beneficiary of AI. While Alphabet shares performed well, they mask the fact that shares of only 2 of the sector’s 12 stocks were up during the third quarter. The other Digital Media stock that performed well in the quarter was FUBO (FUBO), whose shares increased by 29% in 3Q 2023. Of the 10 other digital content providers in the sector, 7 of them posted double-digit stock price declines in the third quarter.
Large Cap Meta Powers the Social Media Index Higher
Shares in Meta Platforms (formerly Facebook) rose for the third straight quarter. Shares increased by 5% and were up 150% through the first nine months of the year. Meta shares increased by 8% at the start of the third quarter due to excitement around the launch of Threads, Meta’s answer to Twitter. Over 100 million people signed up for Threads within the first five days of its rollout and positions the company well for continued revenue growth once it begins to monetize this new opportunity.
As with the Digital Media Index, the Social Media Index masked underlying weakness across several smaller cap stocks. Of the 6 stocks in the Social Media Index, only Meta shares increased during the quarter. Several social media companies performed poorly during the quarter including Spark Networks (LOVL.Y: -59%), which filed to delist its shares, Nextdoor Holdings (KIND: -44%), which has struggled to reach profitability, and Snap (SNAP: -25%), which guided to revenue declines in 3Q 2023.
“No Love” For Small Cap Stocks
As was the case in the Digital Media and Social Media sectors, the same trends held true in the other sectors: in general, large cap stocks outperformed small cap stocks. For example, Noble’s Video Gaming Index increased by 3% in the third quarter, driven by Activision Blizzard (ATVI: +11%), and to a lesser extent SciPlay Corp (SCP: +16%). However, 7 other stocks in the video gaming sector posted stock price declines in the third quarter. Larger cap names such as EA Sports (EA: -7%) and Take-Two Interactive (TTWO: -5%) posted mid-single digit stock price declines while every small cap video gaming stock posted double digit declines.
Noble’s Ad Tech Index increased by 1% during the quarter driven by shares of AppLovin (APP: +55%), and Taboola (TBLA: +22%). However, just 7 of the sector’s 20 stocks were up for the quarter, and 10 stocks in the sector posted double digit declines. One of our favorites is an attractive growth, small cap company, Direct Digital. The DRCT shares declined 20% in the quarter, in spite of posting favorable Q2 revenue that beat expectations and raising full year revenue estimates. Direct Digital leads our list of favorites in the digital Ad Tech companies. As Figure #4 Ad Tech Comparables indicate, Direct Digital is among the cheapest in the industry trading at 4.7 Enterprise Value to our 2024 adj. EBITDA estimate, well below larger cap peers trading at multiples of 12, 13, or even much higher. Finally, Noble’s MarTech Index decreased by 3% (the only index that declined during the quarter), with the sector’s largest companies, Adobe (ADBE: +4%) and Shopify (SHOP: -16%) posting mixed results. Outside of these mega-cap stocks, the theme of underlying weakness prevailed: only 5 of the 20 stocks in the sector posted stock price increases, while one was flat and the other 14 were down. Eleven of the 20 stocks in the MarTech sector posted double digit stock price declines. One of our favorites in the sector, Harte Hanks performed well in the quarter up 18.8%. This was a welcomed bounce from the steep decline in the shares over the past 12 months, down 44%. The company stumbled on quarterly expectations. We believe that the sell-off was over done, providing a compelling opportunity for investors. As Figure #5 MarTech Comparables illustrates, the HHS shares trade at 3.8 times Enterprise Value to our 2024 adj. EBITDA estimate, a fraction of the multiples of many of its larger cap peers. We view the HHS shares as among our favorites in the sector.
Figure #4 Ad Tech Comparables
Source: Company filings & Eikon
Figure #5 MarTech Comparables
Source: Noble estimates & Company filings
Traditional Media
Virtually all traditional media stocks underperformed the general market in the past quarter and trailing 12 months, as illustrated in Figure #6 Traditional Media LTM Performance, save the Publishing group. In the latest quarter, Publishing stocks outperformed the general market, up 3.0% versus down 3.6% for the general market as measured by the S&P 500 Index. The average Publishing stock is up 6.9% over the past 12 months, with some of the larger cap publishing stocks up significantly more, over 20%. More details on the Publishing performance is in the Publishing section of this report. In the last quarter, the Radio stocks were the worse performing group, down on average 10.2%, As illustrated in Figure #7 Traditional Media 3-Month Performance. In addition, the Radio stocks were the worst performing group in the third quarter as well, down and average of 12.7% for the quarter.
Figure #6 Traditional Media LTM Performance
Source: Capital IQ
Figure #7 Traditional Media 3-Month Performance
Source: Capital IQ
Television Broadcasting
Have the TV stocks discounted too much?
We believe that the economic headwinds of rising interest rates and inflation have begun to hit local advertising. Local advertising had been relatively stable, favorably influenced by a resurgence of Auto advertising. Notably, local advertising fared much better than national advertising, which was down in the absence of Political advertising. As we look toward the fourth quarter, local advertising appears to be weakening. But, notably, national advertising appears to be doing much better, driven by an early influx of Political advertising. While it was assumed that Political would increase in the fourth quarter due to the run-off of the Republican presidential candidates, especially in early primary States, we believe that President Biden has recently stepped-up advertising, particularly to the Hispanic community. We have noticed Biden advertising even in Florida! So, what does this mean for media fundamentals?
It is difficult to predict where Political dollars will be spent and not all Political dollars will be spent evenly, geographically or by stations in a particular market. Furthermore, Political dollars may be pulled back in a market should a particular candidate pull ahead in the polls. Political dollars were anticipated to be spent in early primary States, specifically for the Republican candidates. But, the Biden money is a surprise. Biden appears to be spending early and in areas to solidify a key voting block, Hispanics. Of course, the Biden campaign may broaden its spending to other voting blocks as well. In our view, 2024 will be a banner year for Political advertising given the large amount of Political fundraising by the candidates and by Political Action Committees. The prospect of weak local advertising, however, may cast a pall over the current expected strong revenue growth in 2024. Many analysts, including myself, expected that economic prospects would improve in 2024, which would have provided a favorable tailwind for a significant improvement in total TV advertising in 2024. Certainly, it is likely that the Fed may lower interest rates in 2024, potentially providing a boost to local advertising prospects, but that improvement may come late in the year. But, overall, in spite of the weakening Local advertising environment, given the improving National advertising trends, overall TV advertising appears to have stabilized.
For now, we are cautiously optimistic about 2024, with the caveat that revenue growth may be somewhat tempered given the current weak local advertising trends. Nonetheless, we believe that we are nearing the trough for this economic cycle. Some companies, like E.W. Scripps, are in a favorable cycle for Retransmission renewals. Retransmission revenues now account for a hefty 50% of Scripps’ total broadcast revenue. In Scripps’ case, 75% of its subscribers are under renewal, which it recently announced was completed. As such, the company reaffirmed guidance that Retransmission revenue will increase 15% in 2024 and lead to a substantial increase in net Retransmission revenue. We remain constructive on TV stocks, as high margin Political advertising should boost balance sheets and improve stock valuations.
In the latest quarter, TV stocks underperformed the general market. As Figure #7 Traditional Media 3-Month Performanceillustrates, the Noble TV Index decreased 13.2%, underperforming the 3.6% decline in the general market as measured by the S&P 500. The poor performance of the latest quarter adversely affected the trailing 12 month performance, bringing the Noble TV Index to a 17.6% decline for the trailing 12 months. Individual stocks performed more poorly, with only the shares of Fox Corporation registering a modest gain for the trailing 12 months of 2.7%. The Noble TV Index is market cap weighted, and, as such, Fox with a $15 billion market cap, carried the index. Outside of the relatively strong performance of this large cap stock, all of the TV stocks were down and down big, between 18% to 59% over the past 12 months.
We believe that investors have shied away from cyclicals, smaller cap stocks, and from companies with higher debt levels. This accounts for the poor performance of Gray Television and E.W. Scripps, both of which have elevated debt leverage given recent acquisitions. Both were among the poorest performers for the latest quarter and for the trailing 12 months. The GTN shares were down 12% in the third quarter and 38% for the last 12 months; the SSP shares down 40% and 58%, respectively.
We believe that the sell-off has been overdone, especially as the industry is expected to cycle toward an improved fundamental environment in 2024. As Figure #8 TV Industry Comparables indicate, the Broadcast TV stocks trade at a modest 5.3 times Enterprise Value to our 2024 adj. EBITDA estimates, well below historic 20 year average trading multiples of 8 to 12 times. We believe that the depressed valuations largely discount the prospect of an economic downturn and do not reflect the revenue and cash flow upside as we cycle into a Political year. Given the steep valuation discount to historic levels, we believe that the stocks are 15% to 20% below levels where the stocks normally would be given a favorable Political cycle. Our favorites in the TV space include: Entravision (EVC), one of the beneficiaries of the influx of Political advertising to Hispanics; E.W. Scripps (SSP), a play on Political, with the favorable fundamental tailwind of strong Retransmission revenue growth; and, Gray Television (GTN), one of the leading Political advertising plays.
Figure #8 TV Industry Comparables
Source: Noble estimates & Eikon
Radio Broadcasting
Shoring up balance sheets.
The Radio industry has struggled in the first half as National advertising weakened throughout the year. On average National advertising was down roughly20% or more for many Radio broadcasters. Local held up relatively well, although down in the range of 3% to 5%. Fortunately, for many broadcasters, a push into Digital, which grew in the first half, helped to stabilize total company revenues. As we look to the fourth quarter, we believe that Local advertising is weakening, expected to be down in the range of 5% to 7%, or more in some of the larger markets. But, for some, National advertising is improving, driven by Political advertising. But, Political is not evenly spread. As such, we anticipate that there will be a cautious outlook for many in the industry for the second half of the year.
For some in the industry, the challenged revenue environment has put a strain on managing cash flows to maintain hefty debt loads. We believe that debt leverage is among the top concern for investors. Many of the poorest performing stocks in the quarter and for the trailing 12 months carry some of the highest debt leverage in the industry. The Noble Radio Index decreased a significant 13.7% in the latest quarter compared with a 3.7% decline for the general market. But, a look at the individual stock performance tells a more disappointing story. The shares of Salem Media declined 38% in the latest quarter, bringing 12 month performance to a 44% decline. The shares of iHeart Media decline 49% for the year.
Notably, Salem Media assuaged much of its liquidity concerns with recent asset sales. Such sales will bring in roughly $30 million, allowing it to fully pay off its $22 million revolver and have some flexibility with remaining cash on its balance sheet. We do not believe that investors have fully credited the significance of the recent asset sales.
One bright spot in the group has been the shares of Townsquare Media. While the TSQ shares gave back a significant 27% in the third quarter, the shares are still up 20% over the past 12 months, among one of the best performance in the industry. We believe that the company’s initiation of a substantial dividend resonated with investors.
While the industry faces fundamental headwinds given the current economic challenges, we believe that most companies have made a shift toward faster growth, digital business models. In addition, we believe that Radio will see a lift from Political advertising in 2024, although not to the extent that the TV industry will see. Nonetheless, we look for an improving advertising scenario in 2024. As such, we are constructive on the industry. One of our current favorites leads the industry in its Digital transition, Townsquare Media. As Figure #9 Radio Industry Comparables indicates, the TSQ shares are among the cheapest in the industry, trading at 5.1 times EV to our 2024 adj. EBITDA estimate, well below the average of 7.1 times for the industry. In addition, we like Saga Communications, one of the cheapest stocks in the industry, trading near 4 times EV to 2024 adj. EBITDA.
Figure #9 Radio Industry Comparables
Source: Noble estimates & Eikon
Publishing
Further cost cutting will cut deep.
Publishers are not likely to be spared from the weakening local advertising business. But, publishers have a play book on areas to cut expenses to manage cash flows. Certainly, we believe that its Digital businesses should help offset some of the anticipated revenue declines on its print legacy business. We believe that publishers are eliminating print days. Such a move likely will indicate further pressure on print revenues, but would not proportionately decrease cash flow. Some print days have very little advertising and/or advertisers may shift some spending to other print days. Lee Enterprises indicated in its last call that it will go down to 3 print days in 44 of its smaller markets. We believe that the move has been a success. While revenues may have decreased slightly more than expected given the current weak advertising environment, we believe that cost savings have been more than anticipated.
While many publishers would like to have a long runway for its cash flowing print business, such possible moves would necessarily increase the digital transition. Notably, with just some stabilization of revenues on the print side, many publishers have the potential to show total company revenue growth given benefit from digital revenue. With the prospect of strategies that may cut print days and the current weak local advertising environment, we believe that total revenue growth may be pushed out to 2025.
Many of the Publishing stocks were written off long ago. But, surprisingly, the Publishing stocks have been among the best stock performers in the latest quarter and for the trailing 12 months. The Noble Publishing Index increased a solid 36% in the trailing 12 months, outperforming the general market (as measured by the S&P 500) of 19% in the comparable time frame. In the third quarter, Publishing stocks increased 3.5%, outperforming the S&P 500, which declined 3.7%. All of the publishers increased, with the exception of Lee Enterprises. The Lee shares increased substantially a year earlier on takeover rumors. Since then the shares have come back down to earth, while the rest of the industry moved higher. The stronger performers in the industry, however, were the larger cap companies, such as News Corp and The New York Times. In the latest quarter, the shares of The New York Times increased roughly 5% and the shares are up 27% for the trailing 12 months. The shares of Gannett increased a solid 9% in the latest quarter, as well.
As Figure #10 Publishing Industry Comparables illustrate, there is a disparity among some of the larger, more diversified companies, like The New York Times and News Corporation. The NYT shares trade at a hefty 15.7 times EV to 2024 adj. EBITDA estimates, well above much of the pack currently trading in the 5 multiple range. We believe that this valuation gap should narrow, especially as many of the companies, like Lee and Gannett, have a burgeoning Digital business. While the industry faces secular challenges of its Print business and there are economic headwinds in the very near term, we believe that companies like Lee Enterprises have the ability to manage cash flows and grow its Digital businesses. Given the compelling stock valuation disparity, the shares of Lee Enterprises lead our list of favorites in the sector.
Figure #10 Publishing Industry Comparables
Source: Noble estimates & Eikon
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Green Tea Technology Instrumental in Forging Relationship with Hewlett Packard Enterprise and Ad-Tech Holding Group, Direct Digital Holdings
HOUSTON, Oct. 12, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — Direct Digital Holdings (Nasdaq: DRCT) (“Direct Digital Holdings” or the “Company”), a leading advertising and marketing technology platform operating through its companies Colossus Media, LLC (“Colossus SSP”), Huddled Masses LLC (“Huddled Masses”) and Orange142, LLC (“Orange142”), today announced it has selected the HPE GreenLake edge-to-cloud platform to build a highly reliable, scalable and secure production environment. Green Tea Technology, an authorized HPE partner, will provide installation and support services.
Colossus SSP will now incorporate the HPE GreenLake platform with its on-premises infrastructure and cloud services across its entire marketplace to support Direct Digital Holdings’ sell-side platform. The marketplace manages approximately 136,000 clients monthly, generating over 250 billion impressions per month across display, CTV, in-app video and other media channels.
“HPE GreenLake has enabled Direct Digital Holdings to deliver a modern cloud experience to customers with flexibility to meet their demands in real time,” said Alexia Clements, VP of worldwide go-to-market for HPE GreenLake Cloud Services, HPE. “We’re focused on delivering differentiated cloud solutions that allow our partners to serve as trusted advisors and help customers modernize their IT environments to improve their business outcomes.”
“Our relationship with HPE is strategic for our company, as we partner with HPE GreenLake for our digital infrastructure for our supply-side technology platform,” said Mark Walker, co-founder and CEO of Direct Digital Holdings. “Thanks to the flexibility provided by HPE GreenLake, we have the ability to continue our accelerated growth as we bring new technology products to our media partners. Green Tea Technology has been an excellent resource and partner in helping us leverage HPE for this strategic platform solution.”
Brad Davis, the owner and CTO of Green Tea Technology, stated that the HPE GreenLake platform is more than a year ahead of its competitors in terms of innovation and edge-to-cloud capabilities. Davis believes that the platform is an excellent solution for Direct Digital Holdings, considering their rapid growth and expansion underway.
About Direct Digital Holdings
Direct Digital Holdings (Nasdaq: DRCT), owner of operating companies Colossus SSP, Huddled Masses, and Orange 142, brings state-of-the-art sell- and buy-side advertising platforms together under one umbrella company. Direct Digital Holdings’ sell-side platform, Colossus SSP, offers advertisers of all sizes extensive reach within general market and multicultural media properties. The company’s subsidiaries Huddled Masses and Orange142 deliver significant ROI for middle market advertisers by providing data-optimized programmatic solutions at scale for businesses in sectors that range from energy to healthcare to travel to financial services. Direct Digital Holdings’ sell- and buy-side solutions manage approximately 136,000 clients monthly, generating over 250 billion impressions per month across display, CTV, in-app and other media channels.
About Green Tea Technology
Green Tea Technology is a leading IT solutions provider headquartered in Austin, Texas. As an accredited HPE Certified GreenLake integration partner , the company is at the forefront of delivering cutting-edge Hybrid cloud solutions tailored to meet the unique needs of businesses, both large and small. With a commitment to innovation and sustainability, Green Tea Technology is dedicated to architecting robust, scalable, and environmentally-friendly IT infrastructures.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of federal securities laws and which are subject to certain risks, trends and uncertainties.
As used below, “we,” “us,” and “our” refer to the Company. We use words such as “could,” “would,” “may,” “might,” “will,” “expect,” “likely,” “believe,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “project” and other similar expressions to identify forward-looking statements, but not all forward-looking statements include these words. All statements contained in this press release that do not relate to matters of historical fact should be considered forward-looking statements.
All of our forward-looking statements involve estimates and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by the forward-looking statements. Our forward-looking statements are based on assumptions that we have made in light of our industry experience and our perceptions of historical trends, current conditions, expected future developments and other factors we believe are appropriate under the circumstances. Although we believe that these forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, many factors could affect our actual operating and financial performance and cause our performance to differ materially from the performance expressed in or implied by the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to: our dependence on the overall demand for advertising, which could be influenced by economic downturns; any slow-down or unanticipated development in the market for programmatic advertising campaigns; the effects of health epidemics; operational and performance issues with our platform, whether real or perceived, including a failure to respond to technological changes or to upgrade our technology systems; any significant inadvertent disclosure or breach of confidential and/or personal information we hold, or of the security of our or our customers’, suppliers’ or other partners’ computer systems; any unavailability or non-performance of the non-proprietary technology, software, products and services that we use; unfavorable publicity and negative public perception about our industry, particularly concerns regarding data privacy and security relating to our industry’s technology and practices, and any perceived failure to comply with laws and industry self-regulation; restrictions on the use of third-party “cookies,” mobile device IDs or other tracking technologies, which could diminish our platform’s effectiveness; any inability to compete in our intensely competitive market; any significant fluctuations caused by our high customer concentration; our limited operating history, which could result in our past results not being indicative of future operating performance; any violation of legal and regulatory requirements or any misconduct by our employees, subcontractors, agents or business partners; any strain on our resources, diversion of our management’s attention or impact on our ability to attract and retain qualified board members as a result of being a public company; our dependence, as a holding company, on receiving distributions from Direct Digital Holdings, LLC to pay our taxes, expenses and dividends; the satisfaction of the conditions to the Offer, including the minimum tender condition; and other factors and assumptions discussed in the “Risk Factors,” “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Conditions and Results of Operations” and other sections of our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission that we make from time to time. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize or should any of these assumptions prove to be incorrect, our actual operating and financial performance may vary in material respects from the performance projected in these forward-looking statements. Further, any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made, and except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement contained in this press release to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which it is made or to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events or circumstances, and we claim the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
HOUSTON, Sept. 29, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — Direct Digital Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq: DRCT) (“Direct Digital Holdings” or the “Company”), a leading advertising and marketing technology platform operating through its companies Colossus Media, LLC (“Colossus SSP”), Huddled Masses LLC (“Huddled Masses”) and Orange142, LLC (“Orange142”), today announced that the Company’s offer to purchase (the “Offer”) all of its outstanding publicly traded warrants (the “Warrants”) to purchase shares of its Class A common stock, par value $0.001 per share, at a purchase price of $1.20 in cash, without interest, expired one minute after 11:59 p.m., Eastern Time, on September 28, 2023.
According to information provided by Equiniti Trust Company, LLC, the Depositary for the Offer, 2,229,263 Warrants, including 36,242 Warrants through guaranteed delivery, representing approximately 69.3% of the outstanding Warrants, were validly tendered and not withdrawn prior to the expiration of the Offer. The tender of 2,229,263 Warrants satisfies the Minimum Tender Condition (as defined in the Offer to Purchase) for the Offer. Pursuant to the terms of the Offer and assuming the Warrants through guaranteed delivery are properly submitted before the end of the guaranteed delivery period on October 2, 2023, the Company expects to pay an aggregate of $2.7 million in cash in exchange for such Warrants. Such payment will be made promptly. Holders of Warrants that were validly tendered and not validly withdrawn prior to the expiration of the Offer and Consent Solicitation, and upon the successful completion of any guaranteed delivery, will receive $1.20 per share for each Warrant tendered by the holder and exchanged pursuant to the Offer. The Company expects to accept all validly tendered Warrants for exchange and settlement on or before October 4, 2023 (the “Settlement”).
Direct Digital Holdings also solicited consents (the “Consent Solicitation”) to amend the Warrant Agent Agreement, dated as of February 15, 2022 (the “Warrant Agreement”), by and between Direct Digital Holdings and Equiniti Trust Company, LLC (formerly American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, LLC (the “Transfer Agent”), which governs all of the Warrants, to permit Direct Digital Holdings to redeem each outstanding Warrant for $0.35 in cash, without interest, which is approximately 71% less than the price applicable to the Offer (such amendment, the “Warrant Amendment”). Pursuant to the terms of the Warrant Agreement, the adoption of the Warrant Amendment will require the consent of holders of at least 50.1% of the outstanding Warrants. In order to tender the Warrants in the Offer and receive $1.20 in cash for each of their Warrants, holders of the Warrants are required to consent to the Warrant Amendment. The 2,193,021 Warrants that were validly tendered and not withdrawn prior to the expiration of the Offer (excluding those Warrants being delivered through guaranteed delivery) exceeds the 50.1 % required to effect the Warrant Amendment. The Company expects to execute the Warrant Amendment concurrently with the Settlement.
The Offer and Consent Solicitation are being made pursuant to a Second Amended and Restated Offer to Purchase dated September 21, 2023, and Schedule TO, originally filed on August 29, 2023, as amended and supplemented, each of which has been filed with the SEC and more fully set forth the terms and conditions of the Offer and Consent Solicitation.
The Company’s Class A common stock and Warrants are listed on The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC under the symbols “DRCT” and “DRCTW,” respectively.
Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated has been appointed as the Dealer Manager for the Offer and Consent Solicitation, D.F. King, Co., Inc. (“D.F. King”) has been appointed as the Information Agent for the Offer and Consent Solicitation, and Equiniti Trust Company, LLC has been appointed as the Depositary for the Offer and Consent Solicitation. All questions concerning tender procedures and requests for additional copies of the offer materials, including the letter of transmittal and consent should be directed to D.F. King.
Disclaimer
This announcement is for informational purposes only and shall not constitute an offer to purchase or a solicitation of an offer to sell the Warrants. The Offer and Consent Solicitation are being made only through the Schedule TO and Offer to Purchase, and the complete terms and conditions of the Offer and Consent Solicitation are set forth in the Schedule TO and Offer to Purchase.
About Direct Digital Holdings
Direct Digital Holdings (Nasdaq: DRCT), owner of operating companies Colossus SSP, Huddled Masses, and Orange 142, brings state-of-the-art sell- and buy-side advertising platforms together under one umbrella company. Direct Digital Holdings’ sell-side platform, Colossus SSP, offers advertisers of all sizes extensive reach within general market and multicultural media properties. The Company’s subsidiaries Huddled Masses and Orange142 deliver significant ROI for middle market advertisers by providing data-optimized programmatic solutions at scale for businesses in sectors that range from energy to healthcare to travel to financial services. Direct Digital Holdings’ sell- and buy-side solutions manage on average over 136,000 clients monthly, generating approximately 250 billion impressions per month across display, CTV, in-app and other media channels.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of federal securities laws and which are subject to certain risks, trends and uncertainties.
As used below, “we,” “us,” and “our” refer to the Company. We use words such as “could,” “would,” “may,” “might,” “will,” “expect,” “likely,” “believe,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “project” and other similar expressions to identify forward-looking statements, but not all forward-looking statements include these words. All statements contained in this press release that do not relate to matters of historical fact should be considered forward-looking statements.
All of our forward-looking statements involve estimates and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by the forward-looking statements. Our forward-looking statements are based on assumptions that we have made in light of our industry experience and our perceptions of historical trends, current conditions, expected future developments and other factors we believe are appropriate under the circumstances. Although we believe that these forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, many factors could affect our actual operating and financial performance and cause our performance to differ materially from the performance expressed in or implied by the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to: our dependence on the overall demand for advertising, which could be influenced by economic downturns; any slow-down or unanticipated development in the market for programmatic advertising campaigns; the effects of health epidemics; operational and performance issues with our platform, whether real or perceived, including a failure to respond to technological changes or to upgrade our technology systems; any significant inadvertent disclosure or breach of confidential and/or personal information we hold, or of the security of our or our customers’, suppliers’ or other partners’ computer systems; any unavailability or non-performance of the non-proprietary technology, software, products and services that we use; unfavorable publicity and negative public perception about our industry, particularly concerns regarding data privacy and security relating to our industry’s technology and practices, and any perceived failure to comply with laws and industry self-regulation; restrictions on the use of third-party “cookies,” mobile device IDs or other tracking technologies, which could diminish our platform’s effectiveness; any inability to compete in our intensely competitive market; any significant fluctuations caused by our high customer concentration; our limited operating history, which could result in our past results not being indicative of future operating performance; any violation of legal and regulatory requirements or any misconduct by our employees, subcontractors, agents or business partners; any strain on our resources, diversion of our management’s attention or impact on our ability to attract and retain qualified board members as a result of being a public company; our dependence, as a holding company, on receiving distributions from Direct Digital Holdings, LLC to pay our taxes, expenses and dividends; the satisfaction of the conditions to the Offer, including the minimum tender condition; and other factors and assumptions discussed in the “Risk Factors,” “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Conditions and Results of Operations” and other sections of our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission that we make from time to time. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize or should any of these assumptions prove to be incorrect, our actual operating and financial performance may vary in material respects from the performance projected in these forward-looking statements. Further, any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made, and except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement contained in this press release to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which it is made or to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events or circumstances, and we claim the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
Direct Digital Holding Group’s Supply-Side Platform Colossus SSP to Integrate with Amazon’s Transparent Ad Marketplace (TAM)
HOUSTON, Sept. 26, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — Direct Digital Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq: DRCT) (“Direct Digital Holdings” or the “Company”), a leading advertising and marketing technology platform operating through its companies Colossus Media, LLC (“Colossus SSP”), Huddled Masses LLC (“Huddled Masses”) and Orange142, LLC (“Orange142”), today announced a new collaboration with Amazon Publisher Services, with Colossus SSP integrating with Amazon’s Transparent Ad Marketplace (TAM). The integration will allow Colossus SSP’s roster of publishers – which include both minority-owned / multicultural outlets and general market properties – to tap into the benefits of TAM, server-side header bidding solutions that offer a direct auction approach.
“This collaboration with Amazon Publisher Services will deepen Colossus SSP’s access to direct, premium, transparent and scalable advertising opportunities,” said Mark D. Walker, CEO and Co-Founder of Direct Digital Holdings. “Leveraging TAM will be a boon for demand partners affiliated with Colossus SSP’s inclusive marketplace.”
“We take pride in being able to contribute to the growth of our publisher partners,” said Lashawnda Goffin, CEO, Colossus SSP. “By incorporating Amazon’s TAM, we can offer them increased demand, reduced processing power and transparent auction dynamics through lower costs – without any development work required on the part of our publishers. This is particularly critical, since we not only work with some of the biggest names in media, but also an array of diverse, niche and multicultural properties that will now be able to benefit without any sort of heavy lift.”
With one simple APS integration, Colossus SSP can seamlessly integrate with premium and scalable supply; Ranker is the first APS-connected publisher to integrate with the Colossus SSP via Transparent Ad Marketplace.
“We are excited about the collaboration between Amazon Publisher Services and Direct Digital Holdings, the added demand that the integration will drive for APS-connected publishers, and the value that TAM will drive to Direct Digital Holding’s diverse portfolio of connected media partners,” said Bryan Everett, Global Head of Third-Party Demand, APS.
Currently, Colossus SSP represents 22,000 media properties – offering inventory from both multicultural/diverse and general market publishers. The company has 136,000 advertisers accessing its platform monthly, generating over 250 billion impressions per month across display, CTV, in-app and other media.
About Direct Digital Holdings
Direct Digital Holdings (Nasdaq: DRCT), owner of operating companies Colossus SSP, Huddled Masses, and Orange 142, brings state-of-the-art sell- and buy-side advertising platforms together under one umbrella company. Direct Digital Holdings’ sell-side platform, Colossus SSP, offers advertisers of all sizes extensive reach within general market and multicultural media properties. The Company’s subsidiaries Huddled Masses and Orange142 deliver significant ROI for middle market advertisers by providing data-optimized programmatic solutions at scale for businesses in sectors that range from energy to healthcare to travel to financial services. Direct Digital Holdings’ sell- and buy-side solutions manage on average over 136,000 clients monthly, generating approximately 250 billion impressions per month across display, CTV, in-app, and other media channels.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of federal securities laws, including the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and which are subject to certain risks, trends and uncertainties.
As used below, “we,” “us,” and “our” refer to Direct Digital Holdings. We use words such as “could,” “would,” “may,” “might,” “will,” “expect,” “likely,” “believe,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “project” and other similar expressions to identify forward-looking statements, but not all forward-looking statements include these words. All statements contained in this release that do not relate to matters of historical fact should be considered forward-looking statements.
All of our forward-looking statements involve estimates and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by the forward-looking statements. Our forward-looking statements are based on assumptions that we have made in light of our industry experience and our perceptions of historical trends, current conditions, expected future developments and other factors we believe are appropriate under the circumstances. Although we believe that these forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, many factors could affect our actual operating and financial performance and cause our performance to differ materially from the performance expressed in or implied by the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to: our dependence on the overall demand for advertising, which could be influenced by economic downturns; any slow-down or unanticipated development in the market for programmatic advertising campaigns; the effects of health epidemics, such as the ongoing global COVID-19 pandemic; operational and performance issues with our platform, whether real or perceived, including a failure to respond to technological changes or to upgrade our technology systems; any significant inadvertent disclosure or breach of confidential and/or personal information we hold, or of the security of our or our customers’, suppliers’ or other partners’ computer systems; any unavailability or non-performance of the non-proprietary technology, software, products and services that we use; unfavorable publicity and negative public perception about our industry, particularly concerns regarding data privacy and security relating to our industry’s technology and practices, and any perceived failure to comply with laws and industry self-regulation; restrictions on the use of third-party “cookies,” mobile device IDs or other tracking technologies, which could diminish our platform’s effectiveness; any inability to compete in our intensely competitive market; any significant fluctuations caused by our high customer concentration; any violation of legal and regulatory requirements or any misconduct by our employees, subcontractors, agents or business partners; any strain on our resources, diversion of our management’s attention or impact on our ability to attract and retain qualified board members as a result of being a public company; our dependence, as a holding company, of receiving distributions from Direct Digital Holdings, LLC to pay our taxes, expenses and dividends; and other factors and assumptions discussed in the “Risk Factors,” “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Conditions and Results of Operations” and other sections of our filings with the SEC that we make from time to time. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize or should any of these assumptions prove to be incorrect, our actual operating and financial performance may vary in material respects from the performance projected in these forward-looking statements. Further, any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made, and except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement contained in this release to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which it is made or to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events or circumstances, and we claim the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
Media Contact Laura Goldberg LBG Public Relations for Direct Digital Holdings laura@lbgpr.com +1-347-683-1859
HOUSTON, Sept. 21, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — Direct Digital Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq: DRCT) (“Direct Digital Holdings” or the “Company”), a leading advertising and marketing technology platform operating through its companies Colossus Media, LLC (“Colossus SSP”), Huddled Masses LLC (“Huddled Masses”) and Orange142, LLC (“Orange142”), today announced that the Company has extended the expiration date of its previously commenced offer to purchase (the “Offer”) all of its outstanding publicly traded warrants (the “Warrants”) to purchase shares of its Class A common stock, par value $0.001 per share, at a purchase price of $1.20 in cash, without interest, to one minute after 11:59 p.m., Eastern Time, on September 28, 2023, unless the Company, in its discretion, extends the period of time during which the Offer will remain open.
As of September 21, 2023, approximately 95 Warrants have been validly tendered and not validly withdrawn from the Offer, representing 0.003% of the outstanding Warrants. Warrant holders who have validly tendered and not withdrawn their Warrants do not need to re-tender their Warrants or take any other action in response to the extension of the tender offer.
Direct Digital Holdings is also soliciting consents (the “Consent Solicitation”) to amend the Warrant Agent Agreement, dated as of February 15, 2022 (the “Warrant Agreement”), by and between Direct Digital Holdings and Equiniti Trust Company, LLC (formerly American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, LLC (the “Transfer Agent”), which governs all of the Warrants, to permit Direct Digital Holdings to redeem each outstanding Warrant for $0.35 in cash, without interest, which is approximately 71% less than the price applicable to the Offer (such amendment, the “Warrant Amendment”). Pursuant to the terms of the Warrant Agreement, the adoption of the Warrant Amendment will require the consent of holders of at least 50.1% of the outstanding Warrants. In order to tender the Warrants in the Offer and receive $1.20 in cash for each of their Warrants, holders of the Warrants are required to consent to the Warrant Amendment. Tendered Warrants may be withdrawn by holders at any time prior to the Expiration Date. The Company’s obligation to complete the Offer is conditioned on the tender of at least 50.1% of the outstanding Warrants.
The Offer and Consent Solicitation are being made pursuant to a Second Amended and Restated Offer to Purchase dated September 21, 2023, and Schedule TO, originally filed on August 29, 2023, as amended and supplemented, each of which has been filed with the SEC and more fully set forth the terms and conditions of the Offer and Consent Solicitation.
The Company’s Class A common stock and Warrants are listed on The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC under the symbols “DRCT” and “DRCTW,” respectively. As of August 29. 2023, a total of 3,217,800 Warrants were outstanding.
Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated has been appointed as the Dealer Manager for the Offer and Consent Solicitation, D.F. King, Co., Inc. (“D.F. King”) has been appointed as the Information Agent for the Offer and Consent Solicitation, and Equiniti Trust Company, LLC has been appointed as the Depositary for the Offer and Consent Solicitation. All questions concerning tender procedures and requests for additional copies of the offer materials, including the letter of transmittal and consent should be directed to D.F. King.
Important Additional Information Has Been Filed with the SEC
Copies of the Schedule TO and Offer to Purchase will be available free of charge at the website of the SEC at www.sec.gov. Requests for documents may also be directed to D.F. King at (866) 796-1290 (toll-free) or drct@dfking.com.
This announcement is for informational purposes only and shall not constitute an offer to purchase or a solicitation of an offer to sell the Warrants. The Offer and Consent Solicitation are being made only through the Schedule TO and Offer to Purchase, and the complete terms and conditions of the Offer and Consent Solicitation are set forth in the Schedule TO and Offer to Purchase.
Holders of the Warrants are urged to read the Schedule TO and Offer to Purchase carefully before making any decision with respect to the Offer and Consent Solicitation because they contain important information, including the various terms of, and conditions to, the Offer and Consent Solicitation.
None of Direct Digital Holdings, any of its management or its board of directors, or the Dealer Manager or the Information Agent or Depositary or any other person makes any recommendation as to whether or not Warrant holders should tender Warrants for exchange in the Offer or consent to the Warrant Amendment in the Consent Solicitation. Warrant holders must make their own decision as to whether to tender their Warrants and, if so, how many Warrants to tender.
About Direct Digital Holdings
Direct Digital Holdings (Nasdaq: DRCT), owner of operating companies Colossus SSP, Huddled Masses, and Orange 142, brings state-of-the-art sell- and buy-side advertising platforms together under one umbrella company. Direct Digital Holdings’ sell-side platform, Colossus SSP, offers advertisers of all sizes extensive reach within general market and multicultural media properties. The Company’s subsidiaries Huddled Masses and Orange142 deliver significant ROI for middle market advertisers by providing data-optimized programmatic solutions at scale for businesses in sectors that range from energy to healthcare to travel to financial services. Direct Digital Holdings’ sell- and buy-side solutions manage on average over 136,000 clients monthly, generating approximately 250 billion impressions per month across display, CTV, in-app and other media channels.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of federal securities laws and which are subject to certain risks, trends and uncertainties.
As used below, “we,” “us,” and “our” refer to the Company. We use words such as “could,” “would,” “may,” “might,” “will,” “expect,” “likely,” “believe,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “project” and other similar expressions to identify forward-looking statements, but not all forward-looking statements include these words. All statements contained in this press release that do not relate to matters of historical fact should be considered forward-looking statements.
All of our forward-looking statements involve estimates and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by the forward-looking statements. Our forward-looking statements are based on assumptions that we have made in light of our industry experience and our perceptions of historical trends, current conditions, expected future developments and other factors we believe are appropriate under the circumstances. Although we believe that these forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, many factors could affect our actual operating and financial performance and cause our performance to differ materially from the performance expressed in or implied by the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to: our dependence on the overall demand for advertising, which could be influenced by economic downturns; any slow-down or unanticipated development in the market for programmatic advertising campaigns; the effects of health epidemics; operational and performance issues with our platform, whether real or perceived, including a failure to respond to technological changes or to upgrade our technology systems; any significant inadvertent disclosure or breach of confidential and/or personal information we hold, or of the security of our or our customers’, suppliers’ or other partners’ computer systems; any unavailability or non-performance of the non-proprietary technology, software, products and services that we use; unfavorable publicity and negative public perception about our industry, particularly concerns regarding data privacy and security relating to our industry’s technology and practices, and any perceived failure to comply with laws and industry self-regulation; restrictions on the use of third-party “cookies,” mobile device IDs or other tracking technologies, which could diminish our platform’s effectiveness; any inability to compete in our intensely competitive market; any significant fluctuations caused by our high customer concentration; our limited operating history, which could result in our past results not being indicative of future operating performance; any violation of legal and regulatory requirements or any misconduct by our employees, subcontractors, agents or business partners; any strain on our resources, diversion of our management’s attention or impact on our ability to attract and retain qualified board members as a result of being a public company; our dependence, as a holding company, on receiving distributions from Direct Digital Holdings, LLC to pay our taxes, expenses and dividends; the satisfaction of the conditions to the Offer, including the minimum tender condition; and other factors and assumptions discussed in the “Risk Factors,” “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Conditions and Results of Operations” and other sections of our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission that we make from time to time. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize or should any of these assumptions prove to be incorrect, our actual operating and financial performance may vary in material respects from the performance projected in these forward-looking statements. Further, any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made, and except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement contained in this press release to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which it is made or to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events or circumstances, and we claim the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
Shares of marketing software firm Klaviyo jumped 23% in their trading debut Wednesday on the New York Stock Exchange. The successful initial public offering provides investors a rare opportunity to buy into a high-growth U.S. tech startup following a nearly two-year IPO drought.
Klaviyo priced its shares at $30 each, raising $345 million and valuing the company at over $9 billion on a fully diluted basis. The listing comes just a day after grocery delivery service Instacart went public on the Nasdaq after cutting its valuation target. Investor appetite for unprofitable technology names has waned in recent years amid rising interest rates.
But demand for Klaviyo shares was strong right out of the gate. For investors, IPOs provide a chance to gain exposure to emerging, innovative companies before they are available on public markets. Companies utilize IPOs to raise cash for growth and operating expenses.
Klaviyo reported revenue jumped 51% last quarter to $165 million, as its marketing automation software is now used by over 130,000 customers. The company swung to a $11 million profit last quarter after losing money a year earlier.
This transition to profitability is an attractive quality for investors who have soured on money-losing technology firms in the current environment. One major backer providing strong IPO demand is e-commerce platform Shopify, which owns around 11% of Klaviyo’s shares.
Klaviyo gets approximately 78% of its annual recurring revenue from customers who also use Shopify, indicating close ties between the two tech firms. Shopify invested $100 million into Klaviyo last year.
The marketing software provider enables companies to store customer data and build profiles to target marketing campaigns across email, text messaging, social media, and other channels. It initially focused on e-commerce companies but is now seeing growing traction in other sectors like restaurants, travel, and entertainment.
Tech IPOs ground to a halt in 2022, as surging inflation led the Federal Reserve to aggressively raise interest rates, sparking volatility and a flight from risk assets. Klaviyo is the first notable U.S. venture-backed software IPO since HashiCorp and Samsara debuted in December 2021.
The offering provides investors hungry for exposure to high-growth tech the chance to buy into a next-generation software vendor. U.S. tech IPOs slowed to their lowest level in over a decade last year. If strong demand for Klaviyo shares continues, it could open the door for more tech IPOs in 2023.
Companies that only recently considered going public may once again pursue IPOs after Klaviyo’s success. The IPO window for unprofitable tech names appeared shut, but Klaviyo’s ability to raise over $340 million shows investors still have appetite for rapidly growing software vendors.
Looking ahead, the pipeline for tech IPOs includes names like Reddit, Databricks and Discord. But many may delay plans or explore direct listings to avoid leaving money on the table like Instacart. If markets grow choppy again, Klaviyo’s offering window could close as quickly as it opened.
For now, its strong first day of trading is a boon for both the company and tech investors. Early buyers are already sitting on sizable gains from an asset class that struggled last year. If the tech IPO market thaws, it would provide investors access to the high-growth innovators driving the future.
NEW YORK, Sept. 13, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — Thousands of people visiting Times Square were stopped in their tracks. Splashed across the façade of NASDAQ’s headquarters yesterday were fantastical animals from the Metaverse. Travelzoo META’s Travel Companions gazed out at onlookers and announced with their presence that the future of travel is here. Travelzoo® (NASDAQ: TZOO), a global Internet media company that provides exclusive offers and experiences for members, recently announced the launch of Travelzoo META, a members-only service offering groundbreaking Metaverse travel experiences.
With its launch, Travelzoo META opened registrations for Founding Membership. Founding Members of Travelzoo META will have the opportunity to be the first to experience travel in the Metaverse. Each Founding Member will also be entitled to one of the world’s first personality-based, emotionally-driven Travel Companions (NFTs) that match their personal Metaverse travel style.
Travelzoo META’s experiences are intended to allow its members to explore hard-to-reach corners of the world, like summiting Mount Everest, or travel back in time, to Ancient Rome perhaps. They can also discover new spaces beyond imagination. All this is possible using a mobile or desktop device and a simple browser.
“The Metaverse is too big for companies to ignore,” states global management consulting firm McKinsey & Company. The firm has recently confirmed its estimate of the Metaverse becoming a $5 trillion market by 2030. One of the business segments which McKinsey & Company is particularly bullish on is travel. The Metaverse is expected to have a major impact on the travel industry and change travel experiences for consumers.
Find out how you can be part of the future of travel. Become a Travelzoo META Founding Member at http://meta.travelzoo.com.
About Travelzoo META Travelzoo META is a paid members-only service offering groundbreaking Metaverse travel experiences. Working in partnership with cutting-edge creators, we have access to the latest immersive experiences that are intended to allow members to explore hard-to-reach corners of the world, travel back in time, or discover new spaces beyond imagination.
Travelzoo and Travelzoo META are registered trademarks of Travelzoo. All other names are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of their respective owners.
Shareholders of Digital World Acquisition (DWAC), the investment partner of former President Donald Trump’s media venture, have granted an extension to the company’s merger deadline. This extension allows the special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) more time to complete its long-pending merger with Truth Social, a social network with pro-Trump leanings.
The extension comes after a concerted effort to secure shareholder approval, arriving just three days before the liquidation deadline of Truth Social on September 8. A failure to secure shareholder approval would have compelled the SPAC to dissolve, resulting in the return of $300 million to shareholders, depriving Trump Media & Technology Group of the funds associated with the deal.
However, the merger still faces challenges, including meeting closing conditions and resolving issues raised by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). In July, the SEC alleged that Digital World had misled investors in its official merger documents. Correcting these inaccuracies and resubmitting the filings is necessary before the merger process can proceed. Additionally, required quarterly financial statements covering operations in the first half of 2023 have not been filed with the SEC.
Digital World Acquisition had initially anticipated a year for the merger process when it went public in September 2021 but has encountered several hurdles necessitating deadline extensions, including a previous one in September 2022.
Following the news of the extension, Digital World’s shares experienced a rise to over $18 before settling at $16.80 per share at 11 a.m. The stock had reached its peak at approximately $175 per share in 2021.
Explore other SPAC Mergers via SPACtrac reports from Noble Capital Markets
HOUSTON, Aug. 29, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — Direct Digital Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq: DRCT) (“Direct Digital Holdings” or the “Company”), a leading advertising and marketing technology platform operating through its companies Colossus Media, LLC (“Colossus SSP”), Huddled Masses LLC (“Huddled Masses”) and Orange142, LLC (“Orange142”), today announced that the Company has commenced an offer to purchase (the “Offer”) all of its outstanding publicly traded warrants (the “Warrants”) to purchase shares of its Class A common stock, par value $0.001 per share, at a purchase price of $1.20 in cash, without interest. The purpose of the Offer is to reduce the number of shares of Class A common stock that would become outstanding upon the exercise of Warrants, thus simplifying, and providing investors and potential investors with greater certainty as to, Direct Digital Holdings’ capital structure.
Direct Digital Holdings is also soliciting consents (the “Consent Solicitation”) to amend the Warrant Agreement, dated as of February 15, 2022 (the “Warrant Agreement”), by and between Direct Digital Holdings and Equiniti Trust Company, LLC (formerly American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, LLC (the “Transfer Agent”), which governs all of the Warrants, to permit Direct Digital Holdings to redeem each outstanding Warrant for $0.35 in cash, without interest, which is approximately 71% less than the price applicable to the Offer (such amendment, the “Warrant Amendment”). Pursuant to the terms of the Warrant Agreement, the adoption of the Warrant Amendment will require the consent of holders of at least a majority of the outstanding Warrants. In order to tender the Warrants in the Offer and receive $1.20 in cash for each of their Warrants, holders of the Warrants are required to consent to the Warrant Amendment. The Offer will be open until one minute after 11:59 p.m., Eastern Time, on September 26, 2023, unless extended or earlier terminated by Direct Digital Holdings (the “Expiration Date”). Tendered Warrants may be withdrawn by holders at any time prior to the Expiration Date. The Company’s obligation to complete the Offer is conditioned on the tender of more than 50% of the outstanding Warrants.
The Offer and Consent Solicitation are being made pursuant to an Offer to Purchase dated August 29, 2023, and Schedule TO, dated August 29, 2023, each of which will be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and more fully set forth the terms and conditions of the Offer and Consent Solicitation.
The Company’s Class A common stock and Warrants are listed on The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC under the symbols “DRCT” and “DRCTW,” respectively. As of August 29, 2023, a total of 3,217,800 Warrants were outstanding.
Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated has been appointed as the Dealer Manager for the Offer and Consent Solicitation, D.F. King, Co., Inc. (“D.F. King”) has been appointed as the Information Agent for the Offer and Consent Solicitation, and Equiniti Trust Company, LLC has been appointed as the Depositary for the Offer and Consent Solicitation. All questions concerning tender procedures and requests for additional copies of the offer materials, including the letter of transmittal and consent should be directed to D.F. King.
Important Additional Information Has Been Filed with the SEC
Copies of the Schedule TO and Offer to Purchase will be available free of charge at the website of the SEC at www.sec.gov. Requests for documents may also be directed to D.F. King at (866) 796-1290 (toll-free) or drct@dfking.com.
This announcement is for informational purposes only and shall not constitute an offer to purchase or a solicitation of an offer to sell the Warrants. The Offer and Consent Solicitation are being made only through the Schedule TO and Offer to Purchase, and the complete terms and conditions of the Offer and Consent Solicitation are set forth in the Schedule TO and Offer to Purchase.
Holders of the Warrants are urged to read the Schedule TO and Offer to Purchase carefully before making any decision with respect to the Offer and Consent Solicitation because they contain important information, including the various terms of, and conditions to, the Offer and Consent Solicitation.
None of Direct Digital Holdings, any of its management or its board of directors, or the Dealer Manager or the Information Agent or Depositary or any other person makes any recommendation as to whether or not Warrant holders should tender Warrants for exchange in the Offer or consent to the Warrant Amendment in the Consent Solicitation. Warrant holders must make their own decision as to whether to tender their Warrants and, if so, how many Warrants to tender.
About Direct Digital Holdings
Direct Digital Holdings (Nasdaq: DRCT), owner of operating companies Colossus SSP, Huddled Masses, and Orange 142, brings state-of-the-art sell- and buy-side advertising platforms together under one umbrella company. Direct Digital Holdings’ sell-side platform, Colossus SSP, offers advertisers of all sizes extensive reach within general market and multicultural media properties. The Company’s subsidiaries Huddled Masses and Orange142 deliver significant ROI for middle market advertisers by providing data-optimized programmatic solutions at scale for businesses in sectors that range from energy to healthcare to travel to financial services. Direct Digital Holdings’ sell- and buy-side solutions manage on average over 136,000 clients monthly, generating approximately 250 billion impressions per month across display, CTV, in-app and other media channels.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of federal securities laws, including the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and which are subject to certain risks, trends and uncertainties.
As used below, “we,” “us,” and “our” refer to the Company. We use words such as “could,” “would,” “may,” “might,” “will,” “expect,” “likely,” “believe,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “project” and other similar expressions to identify forward-looking statements, but not all forward-looking statements include these words. All statements contained in this press release that do not relate to matters of historical fact should be considered forward-looking statements.
All of our forward-looking statements involve estimates and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by the forward-looking statements. Our forward-looking statements are based on assumptions that we have made in light of our industry experience and our perceptions of historical trends, current conditions, expected future developments and other factors we believe are appropriate under the circumstances. Although we believe that these forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, many factors could affect our actual operating and financial performance and cause our performance to differ materially from the performance expressed in or implied by the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to: our dependence on the overall demand for advertising, which could be influenced by economic downturns; any slow-down or unanticipated development in the market for programmatic advertising campaigns; the effects of health epidemics; operational and performance issues with our platform, whether real or perceived, including a failure to respond to technological changes or to upgrade our technology systems; any significant inadvertent disclosure or breach of confidential and/or personal information we hold, or of the security of our or our customers’, suppliers’ or other partners’ computer systems; any unavailability or non-performance of the non-proprietary technology, software, products and services that we use; unfavorable publicity and negative public perception about our industry, particularly concerns regarding data privacy and security relating to our industry’s technology and practices, and any perceived failure to comply with laws and industry self-regulation; restrictions on the use of third-party “cookies,” mobile device IDs or other tracking technologies, which could diminish our platform’s effectiveness; any inability to compete in our intensely competitive market; any significant fluctuations caused by our high customer concentration; our limited operating history, which could result in our past results not being indicative of future operating performance; any violation of legal and regulatory requirements or any misconduct by our employees, subcontractors, agents or business partners; any strain on our resources, diversion of our management’s attention or impact on our ability to attract and retain qualified board members as a result of being a public company; our dependence, as a holding company, on receiving distributions from Direct Digital Holdings, LLC to pay our taxes, expenses and dividends; the satisfaction of the conditions to the Offer, including the minimum tender condition; and other factors and assumptions discussed in the “Risk Factors,” “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Conditions and Results of Operations” and other sections of our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission that we make from time to time. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize or should any of these assumptions prove to be incorrect, our actual operating and financial performance may vary in material respects from the performance projected in these forward-looking statements. Further, any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made, and except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement contained in this press release to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which it is made or to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events or circumstances, and we claim the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
CHELMSFORD, MA / ACCESSWIRE / August 10, 2023 / Harte Hanks, Inc. (NASDAQ:HHS), a leading global customer experience company focused on bringing companies closer to customers for 100 years, today announced financial results for the second quarter and six-month period ended June 30, 2023.
Kirk Davis, Chief Executive Officer, commented: “My favorable impressions of Harte Hanks were confirmed in my first month as CEO; Harte Hanks has great people and significant capabilities that are desired by global brands. The pandemic had a positive, multi-year impact on our business, which we’re now beyond. In addition, many of our customers have curtailed budgets for 2023 due to concerns about the economy. This necessitates our near-term focus on further aligning our cost structure, and in addition, shifting some of our current spend to bolster sales productivity.”
“The second quarter results represent a baseline for our expectations in the near term and present a solid foundation on which to build,” added Mr. Davis. “We’re focused on bolstering our sales pipeline, retooling our marketing programs, improving sales effectiveness, and leveraging a new partnership we’ve struck with a highly reputable business development company. Our acquisition of InsideOut in December of 2022 expands our end-to-end offering and specifically our lead generation capabilities. We expect to build on the consistent profitability that has been achieved and position Harte Hanks to generate more sustainable, profitable growth. We’re excited to deliver on these objectives. Additionally, the company executed on its stock repurchase plan by repurchasing almost 315,000 shares.”
Second Quarter Financial Highlights
Total revenues for Q2 2023 were $47.8 million, up 1.4% sequentially and down 1.6% year over year compared to $48.6 million in Q2 2022. Included in 2023 was $2.3 million from InsideOut acquired in fourth quarter of 2022.
Operating income was $1.7 million compared to $4.0 million in the prior-year quarter.
Net income of $0.6 million compared to net income of $4.5 million in the prior year.
Diluted EPS was $0.08 compared to $0.52 for the prior year’s second quarter.
EBITDA was $2.7 million compared to $4.6 million in the same period in the prior year.[1] Adjusted EBITDA, which excludes stock-based compensation and severance, was $4.4 million compared to $5.2 million.
Segment Highlights
Customer Care, $17.2 million in revenue, 36% of total – Segment revenue increased $1.8 million or 11.9% versus prior year and EBITDA totaled $3.0 million for the quarter, up 18.3% year-over-year. New business wins that are expected to positively impact results during the second quarter include:
A multi-national pharmaceutical company has engaged Harte Hanks to develop the strategy for their long-term Customer Service Experience. The scope includes the analysis and validation of their Customer Service vision, benchmarking, gap analysis and a blueprint with an implementation roadmap to inform their 2024 plans to optimize their Customer Care strategy and delivery.
One of the largest consultancy firms in the world has selected Harte Hanks to support a state government’s rollout of Medicaid renewal support for its constituents. This program helps Medicaid users renew for services, as well as provides education on how to engage and leverage the online systems to improve use of these benefits.
Fulfillment & Logistics Services, $19.6 million in revenue, 41% of total – Segment revenue decreased slightly versus the prior year quarter and EBITDA for Q2 2023 totaled $1.9 million, down $1.2 million or 39%. Revenue mix drove the reduced EBITDA margins as growth in lower-margin logistics revenue was offset by reduced volumes in our financial services vertical that yielded higher margins. New business wins during the second quarter include:
Harte Hanks Fulfillment won New Logo business with a major international manufacturer, providing fulfillment support for a new program of Direct-to-Customer hearing aid sales. As a major player in the industry, the manufacturer is well-positioned for growth as the hearing aid market pivots from prescription-only into “Over the Counter” space.
A leading branding company selected Harte Hanks Fulfillment to manage the production, kitting, and distribution of 150k+ curated Food & Beverage product gift boxes for a Fortune 50 retail partner. After producing several million kits on this partner’s behalf over the past year, this represents the first instance where the relationship has fully leveraged our FDA approved, climate-controlled facility for food grade items.
Marketing Services, $10.9 million in revenue, 23% of total – Segment revenue declined $2.5 million (19%) compared to the prior year quarterand EBITDA for the quarter totaled $1.3 million vs. $1.8 million. Pressure on both revenue and EBITDA was driven by a reduction in legacy direct mail campaigns and lighter project volumes. New business wins during second quarter include:
A major insurance carrier supporting government employees has selected Harte Hanks to help facilitate their email transition to a new CRM. While this organization is an existing customer for our Customer Care and Fulfillment segments, this is the first engagement for this client with our Marketing Services team.
One of the largest online travel agencies has expanded its services with Harte Hanks to support an ‘Always On’ nurture program for their global business customers.
Consolidated Second Quarter 2023 Results
Second quarter revenues were $47.8 million, down 1.6% from $48.6 million in the second quarter of 2022. The Company’s Customer Care segment grew, largely offsetting declines in Fulfillment & Logistics Services and Marketing Services.
Second quarter operating income was $1.7 million, compared to operating income of $4.0 million in the second quarter of 2022. The decrease resulted from a less favorable revenue mix and lower consolidated revenue.
Net income for the quarter was $0.6 million, or $0.08 per diluted share, compared to net income of $4.5 million, or $0.52 per diluted share, in the second quarter last year. Results this quarter included $1.2 million of pension expense, as well as $503,000 in stock-based compensation and $1.2 million in severance, largely related to the CEO transition. The severance and other costs related to the CEO transition created a non-recurring, $0.12 per share impact, without tax impact, in the second quarter of 2023.
Consolidated Year-to-Date 2023 Results
Year-to-date revenues were $94.9 million, down 2.8% from $97.6 million in the same period of 2022. Year-to-date operating income was $2.7 million, compared to operating income of $7.9 million. Net loss for the first six months was $(0.2) million, or $(0.03) per diluted share, compared to net income of $7.8 million, or $0.91 per diluted share, in the first six months of last year.
Balance Sheet and Liquidity
Harte Hanks ended the quarter with $13.4 million in cash and cash equivalents and $24 million of capacity on its credit line. The Company has no outstanding debt as of June 30, 2023. The Company’s financial position continues to be strong, and it is well-positioned to execute on its long-term growth strategies in 2023 and beyond.
During the quarter, Harte Hanks repurchased approximately 315,000 shares at an average price of $5.97 per share for a total of $1.9 million.
Conference Call Information
The Company will host a conference call and live webcast to discuss these results on Thursday, August 10, 2023 at 4:30 p.m. EST. Interested parties may access the webcast at https://investors.hartehanks.com/events or may access the conference call by dialing (877) 545-0320 in the United States or (973) 528-0002 from outside the U.S. and using access code 183563.
A replay of the call can also be accessed via phone through August 24, 2023 by dialing (877) 481-4010 from the U.S., or (919) 882-2331 from outside the U.S. The conference call replay passcode is 48804.
About Harte Hanks:
Harte Hanks (NASDAQ:HHS) is a leading global customer experience company whose mission is to partner with clients to provide them with CX strategy, data-driven analytics and actionable insights combined with seamless program execution to better understand, attract and engage their customers.
Using its unparalleled resources and award-winning talent in the areas of Customer Care, Fulfillment and Logistics, and Marketing Services, Harte Hanks has a proven track record of driving results for some of the world’s premier brands, including Bank of America, GlaxoSmithKline, Unilever, Pfizer, HBOMax, Volvo, Ford, FedEx, Midea, Sony and IBM among others. Headquartered in Chelmsford, Massachusetts, Harte Hanks has over 2,500 employees in offices across the Americas, Europe, and Asia Pacific.
As used herein, “Harte Hanks” or “the Company” refers to Harte Hanks, Inc. and/or its applicable operating subsidiaries, as the context may require. Harte Hanks’ logo and name are trademarks of Harte Hanks.
Our press release and related earnings conference call contain “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of U.S. federal securities laws. All such statements are qualified by this cautionary note, provided pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Statements other than historical facts are forward-looking and may be identified by words such as “may,” “will,” “expects,” “believes,” “anticipates,” “plans,” “estimates,” “seeks,” “could,” “intends,” or words of similar meaning. These forward-looking statements are based on current information, expectations and estimates and involve risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors that are difficult to predict and that could cause actual results to vary materially from what is expressed in or indicated by the forward-looking statements. In that event, our business, financial condition, results of operations or liquidity could be materially adversely affected and investors in our securities could lose part or all of their investments. These risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors include: (a) local, national and international economic and business conditions, including (i) the outbreak of diseases, such as the COVID-19 coronavirus, which has curtailed travel to and from certain countries and geographic regions, created supply chain disruption and shortages, disrupted business operations and reduced consumer spending, (ii) market conditions that may adversely impact marketing expenditures, (iii) the impact of the Russia/Ukraine conflict on the global economy and our business, including impacts from related sanctions and export controls and (iv) the impact of economic environments and competitive pressures on the financial condition, marketing expenditures and activities of our clients and prospects; (b) the demand for our products and services by clients and prospective clients, including (i) the willingness of existing clients to maintain or increase their spending on products and services that are or remain profitable for us, and (ii) our ability to predict changes in client needs and preferences; (c) economic and other business factors that impact the industry verticals we serve, including competition and consolidation of current and prospective clients, vendors and partners in these verticals; (d) our ability to manage and timely adjust our facilities, capacity, workforce and cost structure to effectively serve our clients; (e) our ability to improve our processes and to provide new products and services in a timely and cost-effective manner though development, license, partnership or acquisition; (f) our ability to protect our facilities against security breaches and other interruptions and to protect sensitive personal information of our clients and their customers; (g) our ability to respond to increasing concern, regulation and legal action over consumer privacy issues, including changing requirements for collection, processing and use of information; (h) the impact of privacy and other regulations, including restrictions on unsolicited marketing communications and other consumer protection laws; (i) fluctuations in fuel prices, paper prices, postal rates and postal delivery schedules; (j) the number of shares, if any, that we may repurchase in connection with our repurchase program; (k) unanticipated developments regarding litigation or other contingent liabilities; (l) our ability to complete anticipated divestitures and reorganizations, including cost-saving initiatives; (m) our ability to realize the expected tax refunds; and (n) other factors discussed from time to time in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including under “Item 1A. Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022 which was filed on March 31, 2023. The forward-looking statements in this press release and our related earnings conference call are made only as of the date hereof, and we undertake no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statement, even if new information becomes available or other events occur in the future.
Supplemental Non-GAAP Financial Measures:
The Company reports its financial results in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”). However, the Company may use certain non-GAAP measures of financial performance in order to provide investors with a better understanding of operating results and underlying trends to assess the Company’s performance and liquidity in this press release and our related earnings conference call. We have presented herein a reconciliation of these measures to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure.
The Company presents the non-GAAP financial measure “Adjusted Operating Income (Loss)” as a measure useful to both management and investors in their analysis of the Company’s financial results because it facilitates a period-to-period comparison of Operating Revenue and Operating Income (Loss) by excluding restructuring expense, impairment expense and stock-based compensation. The most directly comparable measure for this non-GAAP financial measure is Operating Income (Loss).
The Company presents the non-GAAP financial measure “EBITDA” and “Adjusted EBITDA” as a supplemental measure of operating performance in order to provide an improved understanding of underlying performance trends. The Company defines “Adjusted EBITDA” as earnings before interest expense net, income tax expense (benefit), depreciation expense, stock compensation expense and severance expenses. The most directly comparable measure for each of EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA is Net Income (Loss). We believe each of EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are important performance metrics because they facilitates the analysis of our results, exclusive of certain non-cash items, non-recurring or special charges and items we believe do not directly correlate to our business operations; however, we urge investors to review the reconciliation of each of EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA to the comparable GAAP Net Income (Loss), which is included in this press release, and not to rely on any single financial measure to evaluate the Company’s financial performance.
The use of non-GAAP measures do not serve as a substitute and should not be construed as a substitute for GAAP performance but should provide supplemental information concerning our performance that our investors and we find useful. The Company evaluates its operating performance based on several measures, including this non-GAAP financial measures. The Company believes that the presentation of this non-GAAP financial measures in this press release and earnings conference call presentations are useful supplemental financial measures of operating performance for investors because they facilitate investors’ ability to evaluate the operational strength of the Company’s business. However, there are limitations to the use of this non-GAAP measures, including that they may not be calculated the same by other companies in our industry limiting their use as a tool to compare results. Any supplemental non-GAAP financial measures referred to herein are not calculated in accordance with GAAP and they should not be considered in isolation or as substitutes for the most comparable GAAP financial measures.
EBITDA is the Company’s measure of segment profitability.
1 EBITDA is a non-GAAP financial measure. See “Supplemental Non-GAAP Financial Measures” below. EBITDA is also the Company’s measure of segment profitability.
Investor Relations Contact:
Rob Fink or Tom Baumann 646.809.4048 / 646.349.6641 FNK IR HHS@fnkir.com
Harte Hanks, Inc.
Consolidated Statements of Operations (Unaudited)
Three Months Ended June 30,
Six Months Ended June 30,
In thousands, except per share data
2023
2022
2023
2022
Revenues………………………………………………………………………………..
$
47,762
$
48,553
$
94,882
$
97,615
Operating expenses
Labor…………………………………………………………………………………..
26,666
25,109
51,131
51,027
Production and distribution……………………………………………………….
13,328
13,507
27,780
26,225
Advertising, selling, general and administrative………………………………
5,065
5,340
11,149
11,273
Depreciation and amortization expense………………………………………..
Second Quarter 2023 Revenue Up 67% Year-Over-Year to $35.4 Million
Company Raises Full-Year 2023 Revenue Guidance
HOUSTON, Aug. 10, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — Direct Digital Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq: DRCT) (“Direct Digital Holdings” or the “Company”), a leading advertising and marketing technology platform operating through its companies Colossus Media, LLC (“Colossus SSP”), Huddled Masses LLC (“Huddled Masses”) and Orange142, LLC (“Orange142”), today announced financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2023.
Mark D. Walker, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, commented, “We are thrilled to report substantial growth this quarter in both our buy- and sell-side businesses. We continue to see a shift in media spend from traditional to digital as well as an increase in media spend targeted at the middle market. The results of our second quarter begin to demonstrate the fruits of our previous strategic investments across our platform and we will continue executing on our growth strategies in the back half of the year.”
Keith Smith, President, added, “We find the current market dynamics to be greatly favorable for Direct Digital Holdings as we continue to see strong demand for our advertising solutions within the numerous industries in which we operate. Our unique, differentiated approach to both the buy- and sell-side verticals within our business continue to separate Direct Digital Holdings from the rest and we greatly look forward to growing all aspects of our business through the rest of 2023 and beyond.”
Second Quarter 2023 Business Highlights
For the second quarter ended June 30, 2023, Direct Digital Holdings processed approximately 300 billion monthly impressions through its sell-side advertising segment, an increase of 205% over the same period of 2022.
In addition, the Company’s sell-side advertising platforms received over 11.2 billion bid responses in the second quarter of 2023, an increase of over 70% over the same period in 2022, through 119,000 advertisers for the quarter, which equates to a 34% increase over the same period in 2022.
The Company’s buy-side advertising segment served approximately 227 customers in the second quarter of 2023, a decrease of 7% compared to the same period of 2022. However, revenue per customer of $52,000 in the second quarter of 2023 increased 36% compared to the same period of 2022.
Second quarter 2023 Financial Highlights:
Revenue was $35.4 million in the second quarter of 2023, an increase of $14.1 million, or 67% over the $21.3 million in the same period of 2022.
Sell-side advertising segment revenue grew to $23.6 million and contributed $11.7 million of the increase, or 98% growth over the $11.9 million of sell-side revenue in the same period of 2022.
Buy-side advertising segment revenue grew to $11.8 million and contributed $2.5 million of the increase, or 27% growth over the $9.3 million of buy-side revenue in the same period of 2022.
Consolidated operating income was $2.3 million for the second quarter of 2023 compared to consolidated operating income of $3.1 million in the same period of 2022.
The operating income of our business segments for the second quarter of 2023 was $6.1 million compared to the operating income of our business segments of $4.8 million in the same period of 2022, an increase of 28% year-over-year.
Net income was $1.2 million in the second quarter of 2023, compared to net income of $2.6 million in the same period of 2022. Net income was negatively impacted by higher operating expenses associated with investments in growth as well as operating as a public company and higher interest expense.
Adjusted EBITDA(1) was $3.1 million in the second quarter 2023, compared to $3.6 million in the same period of 2022.
Financial Outlook
Assuming the U.S. economy does not experience any major economic conditions that deteriorate or otherwise significantly reduce advertiser demand, we are increasing our previously issued estimate as disclosed in our Q1 2023 update:
For fiscal year 2023, we expect revenue to be in the range of $125 million to $130 million, or 43% year-over-year growth at the mid-point.
“Our financial results illustrate the momentum we continue to see in our overall business and specifically a strong acceleration within our sell-side segment. We have also further solidified our balance sheet and provided the company additional financial flexibility via our previously announced $5 million revolving credit facility, positioning us well to continue growing in 2023 and maximizing value for our shareholders,” commented Diana Diaz, Chief Financial Officer.
Conference Call and Webcast Details
Direct Digital Holdings will host a conference call on Thursday, August 10, 2023 at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time to discuss the Company’s second quarter 2023 financial results. The live webcast and replay can be accessed at https://ir.directdigitalholdings.com/. Please access the website at least fifteen minutes prior to the call to register, download and install any necessary audio software. For those who cannot access the webcast, a replay will be available at https://ir.directdigitalholdings.com/ for a period of twelve months.
Footnotes
(1) “Adjusted EBITDA” is a non-GAAP financial measure. The section titled “Non-GAAP Financial Measures” below describes our usage of non-GAAP financial measures and provides reconciliations between historical GAAP and non-GAAP information contained in this press release.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of federal securities laws, including the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and which are subject to certain risks, trends and uncertainties.
As used below, “we,” “us,” and “our” refer to the Company. We use words such as “could,” “would,” “may,” “might,” “will,” “expect,” “likely,” “believe,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “project” and other similar expressions to identify forward-looking statements, but not all forward-looking statements include these words. All statements contained in this press release that do not relate to matters of historical fact should be considered forward-looking statements.
All of our forward-looking statements involve estimates and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by the forward-looking statements. Our forward-looking statements are based on assumptions that we have made in light of our industry experience and our perceptions of historical trends, current conditions, expected future developments and other factors we believe are appropriate under the circumstances. Although we believe that these forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, many factors could affect our actual operating and financial performance and cause our performance to differ materially from the performance expressed in or implied by the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to: our dependence on the overall demand for advertising, which could be influenced by economic downturns; any slow-down or unanticipated development in the market for programmatic advertising campaigns; the effects of health epidemics; operational and performance issues with our platform, whether real or perceived, including a failure to respond to technological changes or to upgrade our technology systems; any significant inadvertent disclosure or breach of confidential and/or personal information we hold, or of the security of our or our customers’, suppliers’ or other partners’ computer systems; any unavailability or non-performance of the non-proprietary technology, software, products and services that we use; unfavorable publicity and negative public perception about our industry, particularly concerns regarding data privacy and security relating to our industry’s technology and practices, and any perceived failure to comply with laws and industry self-regulation; restrictions on the use of third-party “cookies,” mobile device IDs or other tracking technologies, which could diminish our platform’s effectiveness; any inability to compete in our intensely competitive market; any significant fluctuations caused by our high customer concentration; our limited operating history, which could result in our past results not being indicative of future operating performance; any violation of legal and regulatory requirements or any misconduct by our employees, subcontractors, agents or business partners; any strain on our resources, diversion of our management’s attention or impact on our ability to attract and retain qualified board members as a result of being a public company; our dependence, as a holding company, on receiving distributions from Direct Digital Holdings, LLC to pay our taxes, expenses and dividends; and other factors and assumptions discussed in the “Risk Factors,” “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Conditions and Results of Operations” and other sections of our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission that we make from time to time. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize or should any of these assumptions prove to be incorrect, our actual operating and financial performance may vary in material respects from the performance projected in these forward-looking statements. Further, any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made, and except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement contained in this press release to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which it is made or to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events or circumstances, and we claim the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
About Direct Digital Holdings
Direct Digital Holdings (Nasdaq: DRCT), owner of operating companies Colossus SSP, Huddled Masses, and Orange 142, brings state-of-the-art sell- and buy-side advertising platforms together under one umbrella company. Direct Digital Holdings’ sell-side platform, Colossus SSP, offers advertisers of all sizes extensive reach within general market and multicultural media properties. The company’s subsidiaries Huddled Masses and Orange142 deliver significant ROI for middle market advertisers by providing data-optimized programmatic solutions at scale for businesses in sectors that range from energy to healthcare to travel to financial services. Direct Digital Holdings’ sell- and buy-side solutions manage approximately 136,000 clients monthly, generating over 250 billion impressions per month across display, CTV, in-app and other media channels.
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
June 30, 2023
December 31, 2022
ASSETS
CURRENT ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents
$
5,668,479
$
4,047,453
Accounts receivable, net
29,628,797
26,354,114
Prepaid expenses and other current assets
1,051,982
883,322
Total current assets
36,349,258
31,284,889
Property, equipment and software, net of accumulated depreciation and amortization of $155,698 and $34,218, respectively
688,716
673,218
Goodwill
6,519,636
6,519,636
Intangible assets, net
12,660,850
13,637,759
Deferred tax asset, net
5,170,870
5,164,776
Operating lease right-of-use assets
714,129
798,774
Other long-term assets
46,987
46,987
Total assets
$
62,150,446
$
58,126,039
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY
CURRENT LIABILITIES
Accounts payable
$
23,357,665
$
17,695,404
Accrued liabilities
3,879,420
4,777,764
Liability related to tax receivable agreement, current portion
40,112
182,571
Notes payable, current portion
982,500
655,000
Deferred revenues
950,831
546,710
Operating lease liabilities, current portion
47,668
91,989
Income taxes payable
22,280
174,438
Related party payables
1,197,175
1,448,333
Total current liabilities
30,477,651
25,572,209
Notes payable, net of short-term portion and deferred financing cost of $1,858,720 and $2,115,161, respectively
22,515,030
22,913,589
Economic Injury Disaster Loan
150,000
150,000
Liability related to tax receivable agreement, net of current portion
4,246,263
4,149,619
Operating lease liabilities, net of current portion
741,771
745,340
Total liabilities
58,130,715
53,530,757
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES (Note 9)
STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY
Class A common stock, $0.001 par value per share, 160,000,000 shares authorized, 3,519,780 and 3,252,764 shares issued and outstanding, respectively
3,520
3,253
Class B common stock, $0.001 par value per share, 20,000,000 shares authorized, 11,278,000 shares issued and outstanding
11,278
11,278
Additional paid-in capital
8,539,858
8,224,012
Accumulated deficit
(4,534,925)
(3,643,261)
Total stockholders’ equity
4,019,731
4,595,282
Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity
$
62,150,446
$
58,126,039
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
For the Three Months Ended
For the Six Months Ended
June 30,
June 30,
2023
2022
2023
2022
Revenues
Buy-side advertising
$
11,803,092
$
9,321,267
$
19,242,758
$
15,152,308
Sell-side advertising
23,600,708
11,940,041
37,383,952
17,479,337
Total revenues
35,403,800
21,261,308
56,626,710
32,631,645
Cost of revenues
Buy-side advertising
4,587,897
3,154,471
7,537,050
5,223,817
Sell-side advertising
20,743,266
9,771,017
32,583,972
14,291,209
Total cost of revenues
25,331,163
12,925,488
40,121,022
19,515,026
Gross profit
10,072,637
8,335,820
16,505,688
13,116,619
Operating expenses
Compensation, taxes and benefits
4,553,029
3,494,692
8,187,325
6,049,728
General and administrative
3,265,160
1,776,981
6,205,254
3,417,873
Total operating expenses
7,818,189
5,271,673
14,392,579
9,467,601
Income from operations
2,254,448
3,064,147
2,113,109
3,649,018
Other income (expense)
Other income
42,313
—
92,141
47,982
Forgiveness of Paycheck Protection Program loan
—
287,143
—
287,143
Loss on redemption of non-participating preferred units
—
—
—
(590,689)
Contingent loss on early termination of line of credit
—
—
(299,770)
—
Interest expense
(1,027,493)
(650,251)
(2,044,794)
(1,364,038)
Total other expense
(985,180)
(363,108)
(2,252,423)
(1,619,602)
Income (loss) before taxes
1,269,268
2,701,039
(139,314)
2,029,416
Tax expense (benefit)
74,312
86,676
(336)
86,676
Net income (loss)
$
1,194,956
$
2,614,363
$
(138,978)
$
1,942,740
Net income (loss) per common share:
Basic
$
0.08
$
0.18
$
(0.01)
$
0.18
Diluted
$
0.08
$
0.18
$
(0.01)
$
0.18
Weighted-average number of shares of common stock outstanding:
Basic
14,772,624
14,257,827
14,676,096
10,701,715
Diluted
14,834,051
14,257,827
14,676,096
10,701,715
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
For the Six Months Ended June 30,
2023
2022
Cash Flows Provided By Operating Activities:
Net income (loss)
$
(138,978)
$
1,942,740
Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) to net cash provided by operating activities:
Amortization of deferred financing costs
272,008
301,105
Amortization of intangible assets
976,909
976,909
Amortization of right-of-use assets
84,645
50,021
Amortization of capitalized software
104,005
—
Depreciation of property and equipment
17,475
—
Stock-based compensation
304,013
15,407
Forgiveness of Paycheck Protection Program loan
—
(287,143)
Deferred income taxes
(6,094)
38,966
Payment on tax receivable agreement
(45,815)
—
Loss on redemption of non-participating preferred units
—
590,689
Contingent loss on early termination of line of credit
299,770
—
Bad debt expense
51,532
24,799
Changes in operating assets and liabilities:
Accounts receivable
(3,326,215)
(6,996,667)
Prepaid expenses and other assets
(256,496)
386,258
Accounts payable
5,662,261
3,406,355
Accrued liabilities
(769,344)
601,699
Income taxes payable
(152,158)
47,710
Deferred revenues
404,121
(905,111)
Operating lease liability
(47,890)
(49,422)
Related party payable
(251,158)
(70,801)
Net cash provided by operating activities
3,182,591
73,514
Cash Flows Used In Investing Activities:
Cash paid for capitalized software and property and equipment
(136,978)
—
Net cash used in investing activities
(136,978)
—
Cash Flows Provided by (Used In) Financing Activities:
Payments on term loan
(327,500)
(275,000)
Payments of litigation settlement
(129,000)
—
Payment of deferred financing costs
(227,501)
(185,093)
Proceeds from Issuance of Class A common stock, net of transaction costs
—
11,212,043
Redemption of common units
—
(3,237,838)
Redemption of non-participating preferred units
—
(7,046,251)
Proceeds from warrants exercised
12,100
—
Distributions to members
(752,686)
(309,991)
Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities
(1,424,587)
157,870
Net increase in cash and cash equivalents
1,621,026
231,384
Cash and cash equivalents, beginning of the period
4,047,453
4,684,431
Cash and cash equivalents, end of the period
$
5,668,479
$
4,915,815
Supplemental Disclosure of Cash Flow Information:
Cash paid for taxes
$
348,862
$
—
Cash paid for interest
$
1,769,452
$
1,058,548
Non-cash Financing Activities:
Transaction costs related to issuances of Class A shares included in accrued liabilities
$
—
$
1,045,000
Common unit redemption balance included in accrued liabilities
$
—
$
3,962,162
Outside basis difference in partnership
$
—
$
3,234,000
Tax receivable agreement payable to Direct Digital Management, LLC
$
—
$
2,748,900
Tax benefit on tax receivable agreement
$
—
$
485,100
NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES
In addition to our results determined in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”), including, in particular operating income, net cash provided by operating activities, and net income, we believe that earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (“EBITDA”), as adjusted for stock compensation expense, loss on early termination of line of credit, and loss on early extinguishment of debt, and loss on early redemption of non-participating preferred units (“Adjusted EBITDA”), a non-GAAP financial measure, is useful in evaluating our operating performance. The most directly comparable GAAP measure to Adjusted EBITDA is net income (loss).
In addition to operating income and net income, we use Adjusted EBITDA as a measure of operational efficiency. We believe that this non-GAAP financial measure is useful to investors for period-to-period comparisons of our business and in understanding and evaluating our operating results for the following reasons:
Adjusted EBITDA is widely used by investors and securities analysts to measure a company’s operating performance without regard to items such as depreciation and amortization, interest expense, provision for income taxes, and certain one-time items such as acquisition transaction costs and gains from settlements or loan forgiveness that can vary substantially from company to company depending upon their financing, capital structures and the method by which assets were acquired;
Our management uses Adjusted EBITDA in conjunction with GAAP financial measures for planning purposes, including the preparation of our annual operating budget, as a measure of operating performance and the effectiveness of our business strategies and in communications with our board of directors concerning our financial performance; and
Adjusted EBITDA provides consistency and comparability with our past financial performance, facilitates period-to-period comparisons of operations, and also facilitates comparisons with other peer companies, many of which use similar non-GAAP financial measures to supplement their GAAP results.
Our use of this non-GAAP financial measure has limitations as an analytical tool, and you should not consider it in isolation or as a substitute for analysis of our financial results as reported under GAAP. The following table presents a reconciliation of Adjusted EBITDA to net income (loss) for each of the periods presented:
NON-GAAP FINANCIAL METRICS(unaudited)
For the Three Months Ended June 30,
For the Six Months Ended June 30,
2023
2022
2023
2022
Net income (loss)
$
1,194,956
$
2,614,363
$
(138,978)
$
1,942,740
Add back (deduct):
Interest expense
1,027,493
650,251
2,044,794
1,364,038
Stock-based compensation
209,475
15,407
304,014
15,407
Amortization of intangible assets
488,455
488,455
976,909
976,909
Depreciation and amortization of property and equipment
64,988
—
121,480
—
Contingent loss on early termination of line of credit
—
—
299,770
—
Tax expense (benefit)
74,312
86,676
(336)
86,676
Forgiveness of PPP loan
—
(287,143)
—
(287,143)
Loss on early redemption of non-participating preferred units
