NEW YORK - BuzzFeed, Inc. (NASDAQ:BZFD) reported a narrower second-quarter loss on Monday, sending its shares surging 22% in after-hours trading. The digital media company's improved performance was driven by growth in programmatic advertising and affiliate commerce revenues, despite an overall revenue drop.
BuzzFeed posted a net loss from continuing operations of -$6.5 million, or -$0.18 per share, for the quarter ended June 30, 2024. This marks a significant improvement from the -$22.5 million loss reported in the same period last year. Revenue fell 24% year-over-year to $46.9 million, in line with the company's previous guidance.
Despite the overall revenue decline, BuzzFeed saw growth in two of its highest-margin revenue streams. Programmatic advertising revenues increased 3% YoY to $16.0 million, while affiliate commerce revenues grew 9% YoY to $10.4 million.
"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."
The company's focus on AI-driven engagement appears to be yielding results. BuzzFeed was the only digital media company in its competitive set to grow audience time spent in Q2 compared to Q1, according to Comscore data cited in the earnings release.
Looking ahead, BuzzFeed expects third-quarter revenue between $58 million and $63 million, representing a range of 3% lower to 5% higher than the third quarter of 2023. The company also anticipates Adjusted EBITDA of $6 million to $11 million for Q3, approximately $8 million higher year-over-year at the midpoint.
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