Endeavor Group Reports Better Financials In Q2 As IPO Watch Continues

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With its initial public offering possibly just a few weeks away, Endeavor Group Holdings has reported a financial upswing in the second quarter ending June 30.

Total revenue hit $1.04 billion in the period, up from $780.7 million in the year-ago quarter. Net losses in the quarter narrowed to $67.6 million from $328.7 million in the 2018 period.

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Adjusted EBITDA (a common metric that accounts for the media sector’s uneven cash flows) rose 29% to $165.7 million from $129 million in the prior-year quarter.

The company put the quarterly financial results in an update to the SEC document it filed in the spring. The sprawling prospectus laid out financials and other background as it notified investors of its plans to go public. The Ari Emanuel-led outfit, which has expanded dramatically from its talent agency roots, has seen its IPO plan encounter pushback from the Writers Guild and other pockets of Hollywood. Opponents cite concerns about the company’s increased production activity creating conflicts of interest between the representation and production areas of the company. The more urgent matter, of course, is that writers recently cut formal ties with agents across all major agencies in a labor struggle.

In the wake of costly deals to acquire the UFC, sports and fashion management firm IMG, the Professional Bull Riders and other assets, debt has been a concern of many industry observers and investors. In its quarterly update, Endeavor said it had an aggregate of $4.5 billion in outstanding debt and available borrowing capacity of $328.7 million under its revolving credit facilities.

Several weeks ago, people familiar with the IPO process clarified to Deadline that the offering would likely happen in the fall, a subtle shift in order to allow the quarterly numbers to be incorporated. A $700 million acquisition is also pending and is expected to close before the IPO.

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