Highlights
Financial highlights
- Streaming sales up 20% from Q4 2020 to 605 (503) MSEK, 20% with constant exchange rates
- Subscriber base up 24% from Q4 2020 to 1,784,600 (1,442,000) on average
- Net turnover including Streaming and Books increased by 17% from Q4 2020 to 773 (663) MSEK
- Storytel Books sales up 20.0% YoY in 2021, EBIT margin 15.2% (7.7%)
- Earnings per share amounted to -1.97 (-1.05) SEK in Q4 2021, before and after dilution
Other highlights
- FY 2022 Streaming revenue growth target of 30-34 % and Group EBITDA-margin range of negative 3% to 0%. Streaming revenue growth does not include any positive effect from the Spotify partnership. The partnership is under review.
- Storytel signed an agreement to acquire streaming service Audiobooks.com, thus entering the US market. To finance the acquisition, a new bridge loan of 500 MSEK and an increased credit facility to 850 MSEK were initiated with Swedbank.
- An Extra General Meeting was held on November 30. Richard Stern was elected to the Board as a new director.
- Storytel joined the UN Global Compact, the world’s largest sustainability initiative, emphasizing the company’s commitment to investing in, and making a meaningful contribution to, a resilient society.
Highlights After the End of the Quarter
- Jonas Tellander steps down as CEO from February 18. Ingrid Bojner steps in as interim CEO.
- Acquisition of Audiobooks.com completed on January 7.
- An Extra General Meeting was held on February 11. Hans-Holger Albrecht was elected new Chairman of the Board after Stefan Blom stepped down.
- Decision to discontinue quarterly forecasts on subscriber base to better reflect how Storytel operate and create value.
Table 1: Key Performance Indicators for Streaming and Books
| TSEK | Q4 2020 | Q1 2021 | Q2 2021 | Q3 2021 | Q4 2021 | Q1 2022 |
| Streaming Total1 | Forecast | |||||
| Revenue | 503,449 | 517,075 | 545,451 | 583,084 | 605,128 | 693,000-700,000 |
| Contribution Profit | 107,074 | 97,592 | 105,933 | 94,655 | 71,501 | |
| Contribution Margin | 21.3% | 18.9% | 19.4% | 16.2% | 11.8% | |
| Avg. Paying Subscribers | 1,442,000 | 1,540,600 | 1,626,900 | 1,724,000 | 1,784,600 | |
| ARPU | 116 | 112 | 112 | 113 | 113 | |
| Streaming Nordics1 | ||||||
| Revenue | 399,639 | 401,834 | 423,323 | 447,199 | 459,018 | 458,000-460,000 |
| Contribution Profit | 134,166 | 119,418 | 127,010 | 135,684 | 128,319 | |
| Contribution Margin | 33.6% | 29.7% | 30.0% | 30.3% | 28.0% | |
| Avg. Paying Subscribers | 926,000 | 957,500 | 983,600 | 1,024,000 | 1,047,900 | |
| ARPU | 144 | 140 | 143 | 146 | 146 | |
| Streaming Non-Nordics | ||||||
| Revenue | 103,810 | 115,240 | 122,128 | 135,885 | 146,110 | 235,000-240,000 |
| Contribution Profit | -27,092 | -21,826 | -21,078 | -41,030 | -56,817 | |
| Contribution Margin | -26.1% | -18.9% | -17.3% | -30.2% | -38.9% | |
| Avg. Paying Subscribers | 516,000 | 583,100 | 643,300 | 700,000 | 736,700 | |
| ARPU | 67 | 66 | 63 | 65 | 66 | |
| Books | ||||||
| Revenue | 197,346 | 125,189 | 149,962 | 180,116 | 204,316 | |
| Contribution Profit | 81,774 | 52,852 | 66,479 | 83,436 | 97,385 | |
| Contribution Margin | 41.4% | 42.2% | 44.3% | 46.3% | 47.7% |
1. Storytel Norway is included in the figures @ 100%. In the consolidated accounts, Norway is reported in accordance with the principle of proportional consolidation.
Guidance for Q1 2022 and FY 2022
Q1 2022 guidance – Streaming segment
Revenue Nordics: 458,000-460,000 TSEK
Revenue Non-Nordics: 235,000-240,000 TSEK
Revenue Total: 693,000-700,000 TSEK
FY 2022 guidance
Streaming revenue growth: 30-34%
Group EBITDA margin: negative 3%-0%
Dividend
The Board of Directors proposes no dividend to be paid for FY 2021
The full report can be found as an attachment.
For more information, please contact:
Andreas Lindblom, Head of FP&A and Investor Relations: +46 72 506 14 22
Dan Panas, Head of Global PR & Communications: +46 70 186 52 90
This information is such that Storytel AB (publ) is obliged to disclose in accordance with the EU Market Abuse Regulation (EU nr 596/2014). The information was provided, through the agency of the above contact person, at the time stated in this press release, by Cision.
FNCA Sweden AB is the company’s certified adviser. FNCA can be reached at info@fnca.se or +46 8 528 00 399.
About Storytel
Storytel is one of the world’s largest audiobook and e-book streaming services and offers over 700,000 titles on a global scale. Our vision is to make the world a more empathetic and creative place, with great stories to be shared and enjoyed by anyone, anywhere and anytime. The streaming business within the Storytel Group is conducted under the brands Storytel, Mofibo and Audiobooks.com. The publishing business is managed by Storytel Books, and by the audiobook publisher StorySide. The Storytel Group operates in over 25 markets. The headquarters is located in Stockholm, Sweden.