EX-99.1 2 exhibit991q22024.htm EX-99.1 Document

BUZZFEED, INC. POSTS STRONG Q2 FINANCIAL RESULTS AND EXPECTS CONTINUED IMPROVEMENT IN Q3
Programmatic Advertising Revenues Grew 3% Year-Over-Year
Affiliate Commerce Revenues Grew 9% Year-Over-Year
BuzzFeed, Inc. was the Only Digital Media Company in Competitive Set to Grow Audience Time Spent in Q2 Versus Q1, according to Comscore1
NEW YORK – August 12, 2024 – BuzzFeed, Inc. (Nasdaq: BZFD) reported improved second quarter (ended June 30, 2024) net loss from continuing operations as compared to the prior-year period, and Adjusted EBITDA2 ahead of the Company’s outlook shared on May 13, 2024 and reiterated on July 3, 2024. Second quarter revenues were in line with the Company’s outlook, with year-over-year growth in two of BuzzFeed, Inc.’s largest and highest-margin revenue streams - Programmatic Advertising and Affiliate Commerce.
“Our strong performance in Q2 marks a turning point we’ve been working toward for the past two years,” said Jonah Peretti, BuzzFeed Founder & CEO. “We are beginning to see the benefits of our investment in a differentiated technology platform that allows us to accelerate AI product development, make our sites and apps more interactive and personalized, and increase the amount of content our team and audience can create using AI-powered tools.”
“These changes are beginning to drive deeper audience engagement and improved revenue trends on our owned and operated properties,” Peretti continued. “We are not just focused on making small optimizations to our business; our ambition is for BuzzFeed to be the defining digital media company for the AI era, and we will execute accordingly in the coming years.”
Second Quarter 2024 Financial and Operational Highlights for Continuing Operations (excluding Complex)3
●BuzzFeed4 delivered Q2 revenues of $46.9 million, declining 24% compared to the second quarter of 2023
○Advertising revenue declined 19% year-over-year to $23.8 million
●Programmatic advertising revenue grew 3% year-over-year to $16.0 million
○Content revenue declined 48% year-over-year to $11.4 million
○Commerce and other revenues grew 7% year-over-year to $11.7 million
●Affiliate commerce revenues grew 9% year-over-year to $10.4 million
●Net loss from continuing operations was $(6.5) million, compared to a net loss from continuing operations of $(22.5) million in the second quarter of 2023
●Adjusted EBITDA was $2.7 million, compared to Adjusted EBITDA loss of $(2.2) million in the second quarter of 2023, a year-over-year improvement of approximately $5 million
1 Source: Comscore Media Trend, desktop 2+ and mobile 18+, desktop and mobile; June 2024; [Competitive Set: Dotdash Meredith, Conde Nast Digital, Vox Media, People, Bustle Digital Group, Vice Media Group, Hearst]
2 As used throughout, Adjusted EBITDA is a non-GAAP financial measure. Please refer to “Non-GAAP Financial Measures” below for a description of how it is calculated and the tables at the back of this earnings release for a reconciliation of our GAAP and non-GAAP results.
3 The Company determined the assets of Complex Networks, excluding the First We Feast brand, met the classification for “held for sale.” Additionally, the Company concluded the disposal, which occurred on February 21, 2024, represented a strategic shift that had a major effect on our operations and financial results. As such, the historical financial results of Complex Networks have been reflected as discontinued operations in our condensed consolidated financial statements. Amounts presented throughout this press release are on a continuing operations basis (i.e., excluding Complex Networks).
4 BuzzFeed, Inc. is herein referred to as “BuzzFeed” or the “Company.”


●Time Spent5 declined 5% year-over-year to 71 million hours
Business and Content Highlights
●BuzzFeed, Inc. continued to outpace its peers in Q2 as the only digital media company in our competitive set to grow time spent in Q2, up 5% as compared to Q1, according to Comscore. Further, time spent among our core demographic - Millennials and Gen Z - grew 11% versus Q1.
●Direct traffic referrals are our largest source of traffic: in Q2, 90% of audience time spent with our content was on our owned and operated properties. And, direct traffic across BuzzFeed and HuffPost continued to show stability through the quarter.
●The BuzzFeed team has made great progress improving audience loyalty: the number of loyal users - users who return to the BuzzFeed web and app more than once in a 7-day period - has grown 11% since Q4 2023.
●Engagement has also deepened among our user base, with the number of page views per unique site visitor growing for the third consecutive quarter.
●The Company posted a record Prime Day in July, with strong double-digit growth in revenues year-over-year, outpacing Amazon’s overall Prime Day growth6.
Third Quarter 2024 Financial Outlook
●We expect overall revenues in the range of $58 million to $63 million, or approximately 3% lower to 5% higher than third quarter of 2023
●We expect Adjusted EBITDA in the range of $6 million to $11 million, approximately $8 million higher year-over-year at the midpoint
These statements are forward-looking and actual results may differ materially as a result of many factors. Refer to “Forward-Looking Statements” below for information on factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements.
Please see “Non-GAAP Financial Measures” below for a description of how Adjusted EBITDA is calculated. While Adjusted EBITDA is a non-GAAP financial measure, we have not provided guidance for the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure — net income (loss) from continuing operations — due to the inherent difficulty in forecasting and quantifying certain amounts that are necessary to forecast such a measure. Accordingly, a reconciliation of non-GAAP guidance for Adjusted EBITDA to the corresponding GAAP measure is not available.
Quarterly Conference Call
BuzzFeed’s management team will hold a conference call to discuss our second quarter 2024 results today, August 12, at 5PM ET. The call will be available via webcast at investors.buzzfeed.com under the heading News and Events, and parties interested in participating must register in advance at the same location. Upon registration, all telephone participants will receive a confirmation email detailing how to join the conference call, including the dial-in number along with a unique PIN that can be used to access the call. While it is not required, it is recommended you join 10 minutes prior to the event start time. A replay of the call will be made available at the same URL.
We have used, and intend to continue to use, the Investor Relations section of our website at investors.buzzfeed.com as a means of disclosing material nonpublic information and for complying with our disclosure obligations under Regulation FD.
5 Excludes Complex Networks and First We Feast; see definition of “Time Spent” below.
6 +11% year-over-year, according to Adobe Analytics, as reported by CNBC.


Definitions
BuzzFeed reports revenues across three primary business lines: Advertising, Content and Commerce and other. The definition of Time Spent is also set forth below.
●Advertising revenues are primarily generated from advertisers for ads distributed against our editorial and news content, including display, pre-roll and mid-roll video products sold directly to brands and also programmatically. We distribute these ad products across our owned and operated sites as well as third-party platforms, primarily YouTube and Apple News.
●Content revenues are primarily generated from clients for custom assets, including both long-form and short-form content, from branded quizzes to Instagram takeovers to sponsored content and content licensing. Revenues for film and TV projects are also included here.
●Commerce and other revenues consist primarily of affiliate commissions earned on transactions initiated from our editorial shopping content. Revenues from our product licensing businesses are also included here.
●Time Spent captures the time audiences spend engaging with our content in the U.S. across our owned and operated sites, as well as YouTube and Apple News, as measured by Comscore. This metric excludes time spent with our content on platforms for which we have minimal advertising capabilities that contribute to our Advertising revenues, including Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Snapchat and Twitter. There are inherent challenges in measuring the total actual number of hours spent with our content across all platforms; however, we consider the data reported by Comscore to represent industry-standard estimates of the time actually spent on our largest distribution platforms with our most significant monetization opportunities. Time Spent presented above excludes time spent on Complex Networks, as Complex Networks is presented as a discontinued operation within our condensed consolidated financial statements. Time Spent on Complex Networks, as reported by Comscore, was approximately 10.0 million hours through the date of Disposition, February 21, 2024, and 21.2 million and 50.0 million hours for the three and six months ended June 30, 2023, respectively. Time Spent on Complex Networks, as reported by Comscore, previously included Time Spent on First We Feast, as First We Feast was historically under the Complex Networks’ measurement portfolio of Comscore. However, the historical Time Spent on First We Feast cannot be reasonably bifurcated from Time Spent on Complex Networks. Accordingly, for comparability of Time Spent, we have excluded Time Spent on First We Feast from our measure of Time Spent for all periods presented above and for future reporting of Time Spent.
About BuzzFeed, Inc.
BuzzFeed, Inc. is home to the best of the Internet. Across pop culture, entertainment, shopping, food and news, our brands drive conversation and inspire what audiences watch, read, and buy now — and into the future. Born on the Internet in 2006, BuzzFeed is committed to making it better: providing trusted, quality, brand-safe news and entertainment to hundreds of millions of people; making content on the Internet more inclusive, empathetic, and creative; and inspiring our audience to live better lives.
Non-GAAP Financial Measures
Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA margin are non-GAAP financial measures and represent key metrics used by management and our board of directors to measure the operational strength and performance of our business, to establish budgets, and to develop operational goals for managing our business. We define Adjusted EBITDA as net loss from continuing operations, excluding the impact of net income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interests, income tax (benefit) provision, interest expense, net, other (income) expense, net, depreciation and amortization, stock-based compensation, change in fair value of warrant liabilities, change in fair value of derivative liability, restructuring costs, and other non-cash and non-recurring items that management believes are not indicative of ongoing operations. Adjusted EBITDA margin is calculated by dividing Adjusted EBITDA by revenue for the same period.


We believe Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA margin are relevant and useful information for investors because they allow investors to view performance in a manner similar to the method used by our management. There are limitations to the use of Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA margin and our Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA margin may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies. Other companies, including companies in our industry, may calculate non-GAAP financial measures differently than we do, limiting the usefulness of those measures for comparative purposes.
Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA margin should not be considered a substitute for measures prepared in accordance with GAAP. Reconciliations of non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable financial results as determined in accordance with GAAP are included at the end of this press release following the accompanying financial data.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release may be considered forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, which statements involve substantial risks and uncertainties. Our forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding our management team’s expectations, hopes, beliefs, intentions or strategies regarding the future. In addition, any statements that refer to projections, forecasts (including our outlook for Q3 2024) or other characterizations of future events or circumstances, including any underlying assumptions, are forward-looking statements. The words “affect,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “can,” “contemplate,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “forecast,” “intend,” “may,” “might,” “plan,” “possible,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “seek,” “should,” “target,” “will,” “would” and similar expressions may identify forward-looking statements, but the absence of these words does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. Forward-looking statements include all matters that are not historical facts. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are based on current expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their potential effects on us. There can be no assurance that future developments affecting us will be those that we have anticipated. These forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, (some of which are beyond our control) uncertainties or other assumptions that may cause actual results or performance to be materially different from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: (1) developments relating to our competitors and the digital media industry, including overall demand of advertising in the markets in which we operate; (2) demand for our products and services or changes in traffic or engagement with our brands and content; (3) changes in the business and competitive environment in which we and our current and prospective partners and advertisers operate; (4) macroeconomic factors including: adverse economic conditions in the United States and globally, including the potential onset of recession; current global supply chain disruptions; potential government shutdowns or a failure to raise the U.S. federal debt ceiling or to fund the federal government; the ongoing conflicts between Russia and Ukraine and between Israel and Hamas and any related sanctions and geopolitical tensions, and further escalation of trade tensions between the United States and China; the inflationary environment; high unemployment; high interest rates, currency fluctuations; and the competitive labor market; (5) our future capital requirements, including, but not limited to, our ability to obtain additional capital in the future, to settle conversions of our unsecured convertible notes, repurchase the notes upon a fundamental change such as the delisting of our Class A common stock or repay the notes in cash at their maturity any restrictions imposed by, or commitments under, the indenture governing our unsecured notes or agreements governing any future indebtedness, and any restrictions on our ability to access our cash and cash equivalents; (6) developments in the law and government regulation, including, but not limited to, revised foreign content and ownership regulations, and the outcomes of legal proceedings, regulatory disputes or governmental investigations to which we are subject; (7) the benefits of our cost savings measures; (8) our success divesting of companies, assets or brands we sell or in integrating and supporting the companies we acquire; (9) technological developments including artificial intelligence; (10) the impact of activist shareholder activity, including on our strategic direction; (11) our success in retaining or recruiting, or changes required in, officers, other key employees or directors; (12) use of content creators and on-camera talent and relationships with third parties managing certain of our branded operations outside of the United States; (13) the security of our information technology systems or data; (14) disruption in our service, or by our failure to timely and effectively scale and adapt our existing technology and infrastructure; (15) our ability to maintain the listing of our Class A common stock and warrants on The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC; and (16) those


factors described under the sections entitled “Risk Factors” in the Company’s annual and quarterly filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should any of our assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary in material respects from those projected in these forward-looking statements. There may be additional risks that we consider immaterial or which are unknown. It is not possible to predict or identify all such risks. We do not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable securities laws.

###
Contacts
Media Contact
Juliana Clifton, BuzzFeed: juliana.clifton@buzzfeed.com
Investor Relations Contact
Amita Tomkoria, BuzzFeed: investors@buzzfeed.com


BUZZFEED, INC.
Financial Highlights
(Unaudited, dollars in thousands)


Three Months Ended June 30,% Change
Six Months Ended June 30,
% Change
2024202320242023
Advertising$23,814 $29,412 (19)%$45,237 $56,805 (20)%
Content11,369 21,739 (48)%24,476 37,990 (36)%
Commerce and other11,749 10,977 7 %21,974 22,241 (1)%
Total revenue$46,932 $62,128 (24)%$91,687 $117,036 (22)%
Loss from continuing operations
$(4,214)$(16,422)74 %$(25,027)$(40,899)39 %
Net loss from continuing operations
$(6,483)$(22,482)71 %$(33,052)$(51,871)36 %
Adjusted EBITDA
$2,659 $(2,204)221 %$(8,605)$(20,292)58 %










BUZZFEED, INC.
Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets
(Unaudited, dollars and shares in thousands, except per share amounts)
June 30, 2024 (Unaudited)December 31,
2023
Assets
Current assets
Cash and cash equivalents$45,461 $35,637 
Accounts receivable (net of allowance for doubtful accounts of $1,066 as at June 30, 2024 and $1,424 as at December 31, 2023)
46,954 75,692 
Prepaid expenses and other current assets19,260 21,460 
Current assets of discontinued operations— — 
Total current assets111,675 132,789 
Property and equipment, net8,777 11,856 
Right-of-use assets38,058 46,715 
Capitalized software costs, net22,653 22,292 
Intangible assets, net25,166 26,665 
Goodwill57,562 57,562 
Prepaid expenses and other assets8,963 9,508 
Noncurrent assets of discontinued operations— 104,089 
Total assets$272,854 $411,476 
Liabilities and Stockholders' Equity
Current liabilities
Accounts payable$16,556 $46,378 
Accrued expenses15,209 15,515 
Deferred revenue1,021 1,895 
Accrued compensation13,605 12,970 
Current lease liabilities23,326 21,659 
Current debt101,483 124,977 
Other current liabilities4,796 4,401 
Current liabilities of discontinued operations— — 
Total current liabilities175,996 227,795 
Noncurrent lease liabilities25,713 37,820 
Debt— 33,837 
Warrant liabilities1,075 406 
Other liabilities753 435 
Noncurrent liabilities of discontinued operations— — 
Total liabilities203,537 300,293 
Commitments and contingencies
Stockholders’ equity
Class A Common stock, $0.0001 par value; 700,000 shares authorized; 35,879 and 35,035 shares issued and outstanding at June 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively
3 3 
Class B Common stock, $0.0001 par value; 20,000 shares authorized; 1,359 and 1,368 shares issued and outstanding at June 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively
1 1 
Additional paid-in capital725,386 723,092 
Accumulated deficit(654,984)(611,768)
Accumulated other comprehensive loss(3,227)(2,500)
Total BuzzFeed, Inc. stockholders’ equity67,179 108,828 
Noncontrolling interests2,138 2,355 
Total stockholders’ equity69,317 111,183 
Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity$272,854 $411,476 




BUZZFEED, INC.
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations
(Unaudited, dollars and shares in thousands, except per share amounts)

Three Months Ended June 30,Six Months Ended June 30,
2024202320242023
Revenue$46,932 $62,128 $91,687 $117,036 
Costs and Expenses
Cost of revenue, excluding depreciation and amortization25,001 38,967 56,064 76,204 
Sales and marketing4,509 10,139 13,654 22,047 
General and administrative14,052 20,765 30,301 42,175 
Research and development2,721 3,351 5,951 6,479 
Depreciation and amortization4,863 5,328 10,744 11,030 
Total costs and expenses51,146 78,550 116,714 157,935 
Loss from continuing operations(4,214)(16,422)(25,027)(40,899)
Other income (expense), net2,168 (3,675)1,612 (3,055)
Interest expense, net(3,981)(3,942)(8,462)(7,729)
Change in fair value of warrant liabilities(632)395 (669)(198)
Change in fair value of derivative liability— 1,125 — 120 
Loss from continuing operations before income taxes (6,659)(22,519)(32,546)(51,761)
Income tax (benefit) provision(176)(37)506 110 
Net loss from continuing operations(6,483)(22,482)(33,052)(51,871)
Net loss from discontinued operations, net of tax(877)(5,354)(10,089)(12,226)
Net loss(7,360)(27,836)(43,141)(64,097)
Less: net income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interests127 — 74 (260)
Net loss attributable to BuzzFeed, Inc.$(7,487)$(27,836)$(43,215)$(63,837)
Net loss from continuing operations attributable to holders of Class A and Class B common stock:
Basic and diluted$(6,610)$(22,482)$(33,126)$(51,611)
Net loss per Class A and Class B common share:
Basic and diluted$(0.18)$(0.63)$(0.90)$(1.46)
Weighted average common shares outstanding:
Basic and diluted37,00735,48736,79235,332











BUZZFEED, INC.
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows
(Unaudited, USD in thousands)

Six Months Ended June 30,
20242023
Operating activities:
Net (loss)$(43,141)$(64,097)
Less: net (loss) from discontinued operations, net of tax10,089 12,226 
Net loss from continuing operations(33,052)(51,871)
Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization10,744 11,030 
Unrealized gain on foreign currency(482)(809)
Stock based compensation2,499 2,816 
Change in fair value of warrants669 198 
Change in fair value of derivative liability— (120)
Amortization of debt discount and deferred issuance costs2,606 2,307 
Deferred income tax(409)341 
Provision for doubtful accounts(358)(259)
Loss (gain) on investment— 3,590 
Gain on disposition of assets (350)(175)
Non-cash lease expense8,638 10,173 
Changes in operating assets and liabilities:
Accounts receivable30,330 45,871 
Prepaid expenses and other current assets and prepaid expenses and other assets1,584 1,653 
Accounts payable(29,083)9,889 
Accrued compensation696 (11,102)
Accrued expenses, other current liabilities and other liabilities 473 (11,302)
Lease liabilities(10,418)(11,822)
Deferred revenue(873)(2,488)
Cash used in operating activities from continuing operations(16,786)(2,080)
Cash used in operating activities from discontinued operations(8,917)(5,650)
Cash used in operating activities(25,703)(7,730)
Investing activities:
Capital expenditures(208)(471)
Capitalization of internal-use software(6,415)(7,676)
Proceeds from sale of asset350 175 
Cash used in investing activities from continuing operations(6,273)(7,972)
Cash provided by investing activities from discontinued operations108,575 — 
Cash provided by (used in) investing activities102,302 (7,972)
Financing activities:
Proceeds from exercise of stock options1 29 
Payment for shares withheld for employee taxes (230)(220)
Borrowings on Revolving Credit Facility— 2,128 
Payments on Revolving Credit Facility(33,837)(1,317)
Payment on Convertible Notes(31,233)— 
Proceeds from the issuance of common stock in connection with the at-the-market offering, net of issuance costs— 765 
Payment of early termination fee for Revolving Credit Facility(500)— 
Payment of deferred issuance costs(597)— 
Cash (used in) provided by financing activities(66,396)1,385 
Effect of currency translation on cash and cash equivalents(379)(162)
Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents9,824 (14,479)
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period35,637 55,774 
Cash and cash equivalents at end of period$45,461 $41,295 




BUZZFEED, INC.
Reconciliation of GAAP to Non-GAAP
(Unaudited, USD in thousands)

Three Months Ended June 30,Six Months Ended June 30,
2024202320242023
Net loss from continuing operations$(6,483)$(22,482)$(33,052)$(51,871)
Income tax (benefit) provision(176)(37)506 110 
Interest expense, net3,981 3,942 8,462 7,729 
Other (income) expense, net(2,168)3,675 (1,612)3,055 
Depreciation and amortization4,863 5,328 10,744 11,030 
Stock-based compensation1,747 2,129 2,499 2,816 
Change in fair value of warrant liabilities632 (395)669 198 
Change in fair value of derivative liability— (1,125)— (120)
Restructuring1
263 6,761 3,179 6,761 
Adjusted EBITDA$2,659 $(2,204)$(8,605)$(20,292)
Adjusted EBITDA margin5.7 %(3.5)%(9.4)%(17.3)%
Net loss from continuing operations as a percentage of revenue2
(13.8)%(36.2)%(36.0)%(44.3)%
________________________________

(1) We exclude restructuring expenses from our non-GAAP measures because we believe they do not reflect expected future operating expenses, they are not indicative of our core operating performance, and they are not meaningful in comparison to our past operating performance.

(2) Net loss from continuing operations as a percentage of revenue is included as the most comparable GAAP measure to Adjusted EBITDA margin, which is a Non-GAAP measure.