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Highlights
- ITV’s total advertising revenue (TAR) is up by 30% year-on-year for the nine months to 30 September 2021.
- Its total external revenue rose by 28% year-on-year to £2,381 million during the period compared to £1,860 million in 2020.
- The company’s average active users per month reached 9.6 million.
ITV Plc (LON: ITV), a free-to-air television network and the oldest commercial network in the UK, witnessed a sudden spurt in its stock prices on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) after it recorded historic high advertising revenues driven by an increase in viewership and recovery in advertising spending by businesses.
The company’s number of average active users per month increased to 9.6 million for the nine months ended 30 September from 7.9 million in 2020. Its total online viewing hours reached 494 million during the period compared to 356 million in the same period 2020, representing an increase of 39% year-on-year.
Record-high advertising revenues
ITV recorded the highest advertising revenues in its 66-year history, driven by rising business spending on marketing and high viewership for content such as the Euro 2020 tournament. The broadcasting company and production studio also announced that the company’s advertising revenue, including income from ads on its streaming service, ITV Hub, is set to increase by 24% year-on-year by the year-end. With large amounts forecast to be spent on advertising, ITV said that in the last three months of 2021 – when the company usually makes about 30% of its annual advertising income – it would be up by 13% year on year.
The UK’s leading commercial broadcaster reported strong performance than in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, with the company’s total advertising revenue (TAR) moving up by 30% year-on-year for the nine months to 30 September 2021, within which total video on demand advertising (AVOD) revenue rose by 54%. This helped revenue at the company’s media and entertainment business division to increase by 28% to £1.6 billion from the previous year’s £1.27 billion.
The growth in revenues has been a part of its first phase of the ‘More Than TV’ strategy, and the company is currently focusing on accelerating the second phase of digital transformation, along with the use of advanced tools such as cloud-based editing.
ITV Plc (LON: ITV) share price performance
At 10:39 AM BST on Wednesday, 10 November 2021, the shares of ITV are trading at GBX 122.00, up by 11.62%. The market capitalisation of the company currently stands at £4,399.77 million. In the last one year, the shares of ITV returned 41.10% to shareholders.
Group’s financial performance
ITV’s total external revenue rose by 28% year-on-year to £2,381 million in the nine months to 30 September 2021 from £1,860 million in 2020, and by 8% compared to 2019 figures. Its total revenues from ITV Studios which produces and sells shows such as Line of Duty, Come Dine With Me, and Coronation Street, increased by 32% year-on-year to £1,193 million during the period compared to £905 million in the same period in 2020.
