Versant Media Group increased its full-year forecast on Thursday, driven by growth in its digital brands, including Fandango and GolfNow, as well as strong performance across its entire business model.
Earnings highlights:
- Earnings per share: $1.49 vs. $1.35 expected
- Revenue: $1.64 billion vs. $1.62 billion expected
The company now projects total revenue for 2026 to be between $6.2 billion and $6.45 billion.
Mark Lazarus, CEO, told investors, “Versant’s brands once again demonstrated strength, durability and scale, reaching more than 120 million viewers each month during the quarter while reinforcing our leadership across news, sports and entertainment. That performance was reflected in the recent multi-year renewals with two large distribution partners, one in the U.S. and one in Canada. At the same time, we continued executing our strategy by investing in opportunities that will drive the next phase of our growth.
“Following the second quarter, we completed the Full Swing acquisition, added the Bundesliga to our premium sports portfolio, expanded Fandango into a broader consumer entertainment platform, and advanced our direct-to-consumer initiatives at CNBC and MS NOW. Together, we believe these initiatives build on the foundation of our portfolio, deepen consumer engagement, and position Versant for long-term growth.”
Anand Kini, CFO and COO, commented, “Our results highlight the strength of our operating model, continued growth across Platforms and meaningful cash flow generation. We continue to invest in our strategic priorities with a balanced approach to capital allocation. In the second quarter, we repurchased $100 million of stock, and today we announced that we expect to enter into an additional $100 million accelerated share repurchase agreement and declared our third quarterly cash dividend of $0.375 per share, reflecting our confidence in the business and financial outlook.”
The earnings report follows the company’s recent acquisition of golf simulation firm Full Swing. Versant already owns the digital media platform GolfPass and the tee-time reservation service GolfNow. Earlier this year, Versant also acquired StockStory.
Versant shares rose over 13% in early trading Thursday after the announcement.
By CEO NA Editorial Staff
