The PRISA Group has closed 2023 exceeding the objectives committed at the beginning of the year, both in the media and education businesses, with figures that have recorded growth in revenue, ebitda (earnings before interest and taxes plus amortizations), margins and cash generation.
At the end of December, PRISA, the publishing company of
EL PAÍS
, recorded revenues of 947 million euros, 11% more than those obtained in the last year.
EBITDA reaches 181 million euros, 32% more compared to the same period in 2022. The adjusted EBITDA margin continues its positive trend and reaches 20%, exceeding the target set for 2023.
The strong commitment to the digital business undertaken by Santillana results in a 7% growth in subscriptions over the same period of the previous year, to exceed 2.8 million.
For its part, the number of exclusively digital subscribers to EL PAÍS increases by a significant 38% compared to the previous 12 months.
The number of total subscribers (paper + digital) exceeds 350,000 at the end of December.
The focus on debt reduction continues and stands at 832 million euros, 93 million euros less than at the end of last year, thanks to the impact of the issuance of convertible bonds carried out at the beginning of the year and the improvement in generation of operating cash.
The net debt/ebitda ratio stands at 4.3 times, reducing 1.9 times compared to December 2022. In this sense, the Group announced in January of this year 2024 a new issue of convertible bonds with the objective of continuing to reduce the debt figure and boost business growth opportunities.
For its part, operating cash (or free cash flow) improves by 91% compared to December 2022 and at the end of 2023 it stands at 60 million euros.
The liquidity position continues to be solid and reached 186 million euros at the end of the year.
The group's net result, excluding the impact of the refinancing completed in 2022, exceeds the net result of the previous year by four million euros (+17%), driven by the strong operational improvement of the businesses.
The education business continues to perform very positively in this fiscal year 2023. Both businesses in the public and private sectors increase, and income rises to 515 million euros, 15% more than at the end of 2022. The ebitda of Santillana thus reaches 135 million euros, which represents an increase of 40% compared to the same period last year.
The EBITDA margin stands at 26.2%, growing by five percentage points compared to 2022. Santillana's leadership in digital transformation continues to strongly drive the education business.
The teaching systems are growing and their subscriptions increase by 7% compared to the previous year, demonstrating the strength of the offer and the loyalty of their customers.
Also noteworthy is the 35% income growth in public sales.
As for PRISA Media, advertising revenues have performed positively in 2023, increasing by 5% compared to last year thanks to growth in both press (paper+digital) and radio, in Spain and Latin America.
In addition, the number of EL PAÍS subscribers has continued to increase steadily during 2023 to exceed 350,000 (paper+digital).
PRISA Media's ebitda presents a positive result of 51 million euros, 6% more than the same period last year.
Income from this business area also grew to reach 432 million euros, 7% more.
PRISA Media continues to maintain good operational performance during these last twelve months, with significant growth over 2022 in the vectors of digital development: digital subscribers (+38%), digital audio (+13% in downloads and +10% in hours of listening) and digital video (+24%).
Radio (Cadena SER and LOS40 in Spain; Caracol and W in Colombia; ADN in Chile and Radiópolis in Mexico, among others) has continued to lead the audience in all the markets in which we are present with 24 million daily listeners.
Sustainability
This year 2023 has been key in promoting PRISA's sustainability strategy, meeting the objectives defined in its Master Plan and reinforcing its commitment to social impact, transparent governance and responsible business management.
PRISA continues to contribute through quality education, information and entertainment to equal opportunities and the progress of a democratic society.
Among the multiple initiatives launched in Sustainability in 2023, the fight against climate change stands out.
In this sense, the group has launched an Environmental Management Plan that will allow it to accelerate its Net Zero roadmap and has committed to the SBTi (Science Based Targets) initiative, the international reference body based on science.
For the first time, PRISA has obtained the registration seal for its scope 1 and 2 carbon footprint in the Ministry of Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge (MITECO).
In summary, PRISA closes 2023 with excellent results, exceeding forecasts, and advancing its commitment to Sustainability.
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