MONTREAL – Double digit growth from its outdoor advertising division helped to shore up Astral Media’s second quarter profits, which increased 24% year-over-year, the company reported Thursday.
Consolidated net earnings for the second quarter ended February 28, 2010 were $33.6 million, up from $27.1 million for the same period last year. Consolidated revenues totaled $218.3 million, a 4% increase over the $209.3 million reported last year for the same period, while EBITDA increased 6% to $62.6 million from $59.2 million for the second quarter in 2009.
"I am pleased by the strength of our second quarter results and delighted that all our business units continue to perform well in a challenging environment, allowing us to record a 54th consecutive quarter of profitable growth for Astral," said president and CEO Ian Greenberg, in a statement. "Throughout the economic downturn, we have continued to invest strategically in sales, programming and branding initiatives across all our platforms, making important headway in further strengthening our position in key Canadian markets."
Astral’s outdoor advertising sector reported revenue growth of 23% for the quarter. TV revenues increased 6%, thanks in large part to an 11% jump in advertising sales derived from air time this quarter, both of which helped to offset the 2% drop in revenue in its radio division.
