Univision Communications Fourth-Quarter Financials Improve

U.S. Spanish-language media giant Univision Communications on Thursday reported a narrowed fourth-quarter loss and improved other financials.

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The company posted a loss of $27.7 million, compared with a year-ago loss of $356 million thanks to lower provisions for income taxes. The latest quarter included a $28 million impairment loss, up from $12.5 million in the year-ago quarter, and $18.2 million restructuring, severance and related charges, up from $9.3 million. 


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Adjusted operating income before depreciation and amortization (OIBDA), another metric of profitability that Univision management focuses on, increased 4.9 percent to $289.3 million. Fourth-quarter revenue rose 8.9 percent to $671.7 million, with growth in the company's TV, radio and digital businesses amid healthy advertising trends.

For the full year, revenue increased 7.4 percent to $2.44 billion, and OIBDA also rose 7.4 percent to slightly more than $1 billion.

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"2012 marked a very important chapter in Univision’s strategic transformation from a single niche broadcast station more than 50 years ago to an influential multimedia company today," said Univision CEO Randy Falco. "By expanding and evolving our offerings to meet the demands of our dynamic community, we are now reaching Hispanic audiences in more ways than ever before through 12 networks, including Univision, UniMas and Galavision; 69 radio stations; 62 television stations; and a host of online and social media options, including recently launched UVideos, the first bilingual digital network available on more than 240 million devices."

He added: "Our ratings and engagement across platforms for the fourth quarter and full-year 2012 reflect the impact we now have on the overall media landscape. The Univision Network increased its ranking among the major U.S. networks for the full-year 2012 by beating CBS to take the No. 4 spot in broadcast primetime among adults 18-to-34."

For the quarter, Univision said it maintained its position as the fifth-most-watched network in primetime, regardless of language, among total viewers and adults 18-to-49.

Email: Georg.Szalai@thr.com

Twitter: @georgszalai