Urban One Reports 22% Revenue Drop in Q2

Urban One (UONE -4.17%), a media company focused on serving African-American and urban audiences, reported Q2 fiscal 2025 results on August 13, 2025. The report highlighted a significant year-over-year revenue decline, sizable operating losses, and a reduction in management’s full-year earnings outlook, with adjusted EBITDA guidance reduced to $60.0 million for fiscal 2025. GAAP net revenue dropped to $91.6 million, down 22.2% from a year ago. Adjusted EBITDA fell 51.6% to $14.0 million compared to Q2 2024. Net loss (GAAP) was $77.9 million, equivalent to earnings per share (EPS) of $(1.74), compared to a net loss of $45.4 million, or $(0.94) per share (GAAP), in Q2 2024. There were no published analyst estimates for EPS or revenue for this quarter. Management cited broad advertising pressures and booked a $130.1 million non-cash impairment charge, reflecting tougher industry dynamics and resulting in a sharply negative overall assessment for the period.

About Urban One: Focus, Business Model, and Drivers

Urban One operates as a multi-platform media company, delivering content primarily to Black Americans and urban audiences. Its business includes radio broadcasting, cable television networks (like TV One and CLEO TV), digital media properties, and syndicated programming.

The company owns 74 radio stations in 13 key urban markets and reaches TV viewers through its cable properties available in over 35 million U.S. households. Urban One’s core strategies include targeting the African-American audience with culturally relevant content, diversifying across media platforms, and capturing advertising dollars from both local and national marketers. Success relies on audience loyalty, cross-platform reach, and the ability to adapt as consumer media preferences shift, particularly towards digital and streaming formats.

Quarter in Review: Results and Key Developments

The quarter saw sharp revenue declines across all major Urban One business segments. Radio Broadcasting revenue decreased by 12.4%, reflecting soft demand from national advertisers and lower event revenues. Reach Media, which provides syndicated radio content and events, suffered a revenue drop of 71.9% compared to Q2 2024, mainly due to the timing of its Tom Joyner Fantastic Voyage event, which shifted to a later quarter and pulled $9.6 million out of results. Even after accounting for that shift, management cited lower advertising rates (cost per thousand, or CPM, a standard digital and broadcast ad-sales measure) and client attrition as additional headwinds.

The Digital segment reported a 27% drop in revenue compared to Q2 2024, as advertising demand slowed and streaming CPMs fell. Cable Television revenue, covering TV One and CLEO TV, slid 7.4% compared to Q2 2024. as the business continued to face both subscriber churn (a drop-off in paying cable subscribers) and a decline in affiliate fees. Advertising on cable fell 4.2%, while affiliate fees, which pay for distributors to carry the networks, dropped 11.7%. The shift toward digital and streaming by consumers contributed to these declines -- a reversal from previous years when affiliate fees made up the majority (e.g., "we used to be like 55% affiliate, 45%" of TV One's revenue, according to management commentary).

Profitability weakened materially. Adjusted EBITDA, a measure of core profitability that excludes non-cash expenses and certain one-offs, was down 51.6% compared to Q2 2024. Broadcast and digital operating income dropped by 25.0%. The net loss (GAAP) widened to $77.9 million, reflecting both lower operating performance and a $130.1 million non-cash impairment charge -- of which $121.3 million was applied to radio broadcasting licenses. This impairment was triggered after management reviewed future revenue expectations and determined the value of certain intangible assets should be lowered to reflect reduced long-term prospects. Going forward, Urban One will amortize these licenses over a finite period, increasing the company’s recurring amortization expense.

Cost reductions were a priority for the company during the quarter, with operating expenses (excluding depreciation, amortization, stock-based compensation, and impairment) cut to $78.1 million from $93.3 million a year earlier. Urban One also continued to reduce its debt load, repurchasing $64.0 million in 2028 senior notes at a significant discount, which lowered total debt to $492.3 million. This deleveraging effort generated a $30.3 million gain on the early retirement of debt. Cash balances were $86.2 million as of June 30, 2025, down from $137.6 million as of December 31, 2024.

Urban One did not announce any major strategic acquisitions during the quarter. The priority was on balance sheet management and maintaining liquidity. No new regulatory developments affected results for the period, but the impairment charge highlighted structural challenges in the radio business as listenership and ad revenues decline. Share buybacks were limited, with 226,000 Class A and 200,000 Class D shares repurchased for a combined $0.5 million. The company does not currently pay a dividend.

Looking Ahead: Guidance and Investor Focus

Management reduced its full-year adjusted EBITDA (non-GAAP) outlook to $60.0 million, down from the previous target of $75 million. The guidance cut reflects broad economic pressures on advertising, persistent weakness in both digital and national radio, and a reassessment of the business’s earnings profile. Management expects core radio advertising to be down 8.3% compared to the prior year (or 5.6% excluding political advertising) in Q3 2025, with some stabilization in local advertising but continued softness in national. No concrete revenue or earnings guidance was issued for specific quarters beyond this color commentary.

Investors should monitor sector trends such as continued declines in traditional radio listening, the pace of change in digital ad spending, and how quickly Urban One can adapt its portfolio to changing advertiser demand. Cost controls and debt reduction are likely to remain top priorities, with less focus on acquisitions or aggressive content spending.

Revenue and net income presented using U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) unless otherwise noted.