oOh! Media revenue up 18% with 30 new digital locations added

oOh! Media, the parent company of Cactus Imaging, has released its results for the Calendar Year 2021 (CY21), reporting an 18% increase in turnover, attributed to a standout performance in their Road (Billboards) category.  Road revenue increased by 34% with record months in November and December following the soft performance through the lockdowns in new South Wales and Victoria.

Chief Executive Officer Cathy O’Connor says “During CY21 we added over 30 digital locations to our metropolitan and regional roadside billboard portfolio which means we now have over 200 large format digital signs across Australia.”

O’Connor sees this growth continuing, adding “We are generating further momentum into FY22 with a solid start to the year. First quarter revenue is pacing 15% ahead of the prior corresponding quarter and at 93% of the first quarter of 2019”.

Looking at their other categories, there is improvement across most; with Street Furniture and Rail (previously Commute) increased by 23%, although still impacted by passenger declines in critical stations. Retail also showed a significant rebound from the previous year with an increase of 18% compared to CY20; December 2021 became a record month of revenue for oOh!

Whilst the Fly category continues to be impacted by depressed air travel, there was a more robust performance towards the end of 2021 when state borders re-opened.

The final position continued to strengthen through the year, with net debt as of 31 December of $64 million, a reduction of 32% from 30 June 2021.

The dividend policy of the company was suspended in March 2020 and has now resumed. A final dividend of 1c per share has been declared by the board, fully franked, a total payout of $6 million.