PodcastOne, Inc. Common Stock 2027 Q1 Earnings Call

Thank you and welcome to our fiscal first quarter 2027 earnings call. We entered fiscal 2027 with strong momentum, building on the progress we made throughout the past year. During the first quarter, we continued expanding our content portfolio, strengthening strategic partnerships, and growing our audience through premium programming, original content development, and creator-led franchises. PodcastOne continues to distinguish itself as the leading pure play podcasting platform in the public markets through a vertically integrated model that combines talent development, content creation, distribution, analytics, monetization, and operational efficiencies, all supported by our AI-powered infrastructure. Our AI toolkit continues to enhance performance across every aspect of the business. Flightpath drives predictive profitability. Booster scales advertising management and proposal recommendations. Adobe Audition ensures best-in-class audio quality. PodEngine supports discoverability through SEO and insights.

Magellan AI powers advertising attribution, and Opus Pro converts long-form video into short-form content that fuels audience growth across platforms. Our team continues leveraging AI-based search capabilities to discover new talent, identify emerging trends, and connect timely topics with the content across our network. These tools directly support how we grow shows, monetize audiences, and operate more efficiently at scale. Throughout the quarter, we continued executing on our strategy of expanding our network through premium creator partnerships, strategic acquisitions, original content development, and long-term creator relationships. One of our most significant milestones this quarter was advancing to the number six position in Podtrac's ranking of U.S. podcast publishers, surpassing Disney and further reinforcing PodcastOne's position as one of the largest podcast networks in the country. This achievement reflects the continued growth of our audience, the strength of our programming, and the dedication of our creators and team.

We also continued strengthening our content portfolio through the acquisition of "The Magnificent Others," hosted by Billy Corgan, lead singer of Grammy Award-winning rock band, The Smashing Pumpkins, adding another highly respected voice to our network while expanding our reach across music, entertainment, and culture. We also acquired "Life Happens with Barb and Michelle," while officially launching our original series, "It's Okay, We're All Gonna Die with Nurse Julie," reflecting our continued investment in both established creator brands and original intellectual property. Further strengthening our creator roster, we renewed our partnership with Lindsie Chrisley's "The Southern Tea," which recently surpassed 2.5 million downloads across more than 248 episodes. We also partnered with PAVE Studios on A&E's "The First 48," expanding our relationship with premium media brands and creating additional opportunities to reach new audiences. Across our network, PodcastOne creators continued attracting influential voices from across entertainment and popular culture.

Notable guests during the quarter include actor Josh Duhamel on "The Adam Carolla Show," "Dancing with the Stars" pro Ezra Sosa on "Off The Vine," and Mandy Moore on "Yesterdays." Our influence also extends beyond podcasting, as "House of Stassi" premiered on Hulu with Stassi Schroeder's podcast, "STASSI with Tay," serving as one of the central storylines throughout the series. Stassi's continued presence across major platforms, including Netflix, highlights the growing ability of podcast talent and brands to extend into broader entertainment franchises and reach audiences across multiple platforms. As our network continues to grow, so do the opportunities to create value for creators, advertisers, and listeners alike. Our investment in technology, audience development, and advertising infrastructure continue to strengthen our ability to connect brands with highly engaged audiences while helping creators expand their reach across audio, video, and social platforms.

As podcast advertising continues to mature and brands increasingly seek trusted creator relationships and measurable results, we believe PodcastOne remains well-positioned to capitalize on these long-term industry trends through our diversified content portfolio, expanding creator network, and technology-enabled platform. Now I'd like to turn the call over to Craig to review our financial results.

Thank you, Kit. As a reminder, our fiscal year 2027 began on April 1st. Revenue in our first quarter of fiscal 2027 was a record $16.1 million. Operating loss in the first quarter was $1.6 million, compared to an operating loss of $1.1 million in the same year-ago quarter. This $500,000 increase was driven primarily by stock-based compensation within G&A. Net loss for the first quarter was $1.6 million, or negative $0.05 per basic and diluted share, compared to a net loss of $1.1 million, or negative $0.04 per share in the same year-ago quarter. Adjusted EBITDA for the quarter was positive $1.6 million, compared to $580,000 in the same year-ago quarter, driven by revenue growth and contribution margin improvement. We ended the quarter with $7 million in cash and cash equivalents and no debt on the balance sheet. With that, I'll turn the call back over to you, Kit.

Thanks, Craig. We are pleased with the momentum we've carried into fiscal 2027 and remain very optimistic about the opportunities ahead for PodcastOne and the broader podcast industry. Podcasting continues to evolve rapidly, and we believe the opportunity extends well beyond traditional audio. Video is becoming an increasingly important part of podcast discovery and consumption, while major media and technology companies continue investing in creator-led content and premium intellectual property. As that ecosystem expands, we see significant opportunities to extend the reach and value of the content we developed across additional platforms and formats. We are also seeing continued strategic activity across the broader media landscape, with major companies making significant investments in creator-led businesses, content, and intellectual property. These transactions reinforce the value being placed on premium content, engaged audiences, and the data and relationships that come with them.

Under Steve Lehman's leadership, we continue to evaluate opportunities that can strengthen our platform, expand our creator offerings, and create long-term shareholder value. At PodcastOne, we believe the next phase of growth is about more than simply adding podcasts to our network. It's about identifying great creators and ideas, developing them into successful franchises, and finding opportunities to distribute that content across audio, video, television, and other platforms. We are particularly excited about our ability to develop original intellectual property that can travel beyond the podcast feed. Projects like "Varnamtown" demonstrate the potential for PodcastOne content to become broader entertainment franchises, and we believe there is significant opportunity ahead as we continue developing and investing in original programming. At the same time, AI continues to help us improve operational efficiencies, enhance audience discovery, identify emerging listener interests, and better understand the topics and formats that resonate with audiences.

Combined with our growing content library and audience data, these capabilities give us an increasingly powerful foundation for developing and monetizing content. The podcast industry itself continues to demonstrate significant long-term potential, with consumption reaching record levels and audiences increasingly engaging with podcasts across audio, video, and social platforms. We believe PodcastOne is uniquely positioned at the intersection of creators, content, audiences, data, and distribution. As we look ahead, our focus is on continuing to build that platform, finding the next great creators and ideas, expanding the ways our content can reach audiences, and creating more value from the intellectual property we develop. I want to thank our team, our creators, our advertising partners, and our shareholders for their continued support. With that, we'll now open the line for questions.