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Tuesday, February 1, 2022

SiriusXM CEO Says 2021 Was 'Outstanding'


SiriusXM today announced fourth quarter and full-year 2021 operating and financial results, including revenue of $2.28 billion and $8.70 billion, respectively, an increase of 4% and 8%, compared to the prior year periods.  The company recorded net income of $318 million and $1.31 billion in the fourth quarter and full-year 2021, respectively, compared to $(677) million and $131 million in the prior year periods.  The fourth quarter and full year 2020 was impacted by a $976 million non-cash impairment charge associated with Pandora.  Net income per diluted common share was $0.08 and $0.32 in the fourth quarter and full year 2021, respectively.

Adjusted EBITDA reached a new record of $2.77 billion in 2021, climbing 8% from $2.58 billion in 2020. 

Jennifer Witz
"2021 was an outstanding year across the board. We added more than one million net new SiriusXM self-pay subscribers for the tenth time in the past 11 years; this growth continues to be sustained by a fifth straight year of improving churn.  Once again we outperformed all of 2021's public guidance, and now our strong financial position enables us to declare a special cash dividend to our stockholders," said Jennifer Witz, Chief Executive Officer of SiriusXM.

"Our performance last year is a testament to our strong execution – and staying true to our vision of connecting listeners to the content they love. We collaborated with renowned and emerging creators across our platforms to deliver curated premium content both in- and out-of-car; and delivered value to our advertisers with effective solutions to reach a massive audience of more than 150 million listeners," added Witz.

New vehicle penetration reaches 82% in 2021.  SiriusXM's hardware was incorporated into approximately 82% of new vehicles sold in the United States in 2021, up from approximately 78% in 2020.  The company exited 2021 with just over 25% of SiriusXM-equipped vehicles sold in the fourth quarter 2021 incorporating 360L, the company's platform that combines streaming and satellite-delivered content for an enhanced consumer experience.

Podcast business attaining significant scale.  Stitcher continues to attract the biggest names in podcasting, this year adding the chart-topping Crime Junkie to its ranks, as well as the rest of the leading Audiochuck network. Crime Junkie adds to a growing collection of popular podcasts distributed and monetized by Stitcher, including Oprah's Super Soul, Freakonomics Radio, Office Ladies, Your Mom's House, Hidden Brain, and Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend.

SXM Media continues to innovate and improve upon its leading ad tech solutions.  Yesterday, SXM Media, SiriusXM's advertising sales organization, announced the introduction of AudioID, powered by AdsWizz, a first-to-market listener identity solution offering marketers new avenues to reach, target, and connect with consumers at scale with embedded privacy protection.  AudioID is the most recent example of SiriusXM's investment in audio ad technology that is expected to simplify the process of buying effective advertising across satellite radio, streaming music, and podcasts.

SiriusXM today announced that its Board of Directors declared a special cash dividend of $0.25 per share, payable on February 25, 2022, to stockholders of record as of the close of business on February 11, 2022. The total amount of the special cash dividend is expected to be approximately $1 billion.

This special dividend is in addition to the regular quarterly cash dividend that SiriusXM's Board declared on January 26, 2022. SiriusXM increased its regular quarterly cash dividend by 50% in October 2021.

➤2022 GUIDANCE

The Company issued full-year 2022 guidance for self-pay net subscriber additions, revenue, adjusted EBITDA, and free cash flow as follows:

  • SiriusXM self-pay net subscriber additions of approximately 500,000
  • Total revenue of approximately $9.0 billion
  • Adjusted EBITDA of approximately $2.8 billion
  • Free cash flow of approximately $1.55 billion

➤SIRIUSXM SEGMENT

Self-Pay Subscribers Reach a Record-High 32.0 Million. SiriusXM added 1,152,000 net new self-pay subscribers for the full year 2021, a 27% increase from the 909,000 added in 2020, and ended 2021 with record high 32.0 million self-pay subscribers. Paid promotional subscribers decreased by 1,833,000. Continuing impacts of new vehicle trial structures with certain automakers as well as lower vehicle shipments due to reported semiconductor supply shortages contributed to negative paid promotional net additions during the year. Total subscribers were 34.0 million. The total SiriusXM funnel of trial subscribers stood at approximately 6.8 million at the end of 2021, down from approximately 8.4 million at the end of 2020 driven by shorter trial terms and lower vehicle sales. Self-pay monthly churn for the year improved approximately 5 basis points to 1.6% from 1.7% in 2020.

SiriusXM Revenue Increased 4% to $6.62 Billion. Full year 2021 revenue grew 4% to $6.62 billion compared to the full year of 2020. This growth was driven by a 5% increase in SiriusXM's average revenue per user (ARPU) to $14.76 and a 4% increase in SiriusXM self-pay subscribers, partially offset by the effects of a lower number of paid trial subscribers.

Gross Profit Increased 3% to $4.03 Billion and Gross Margin Remains Stable. Total cost of services at SiriusXM increased by 7% to $2.59 billion for the full year compared to 2020. Gross profit at SiriusXM totaled $4.03 billion, an increase of 3% compared to 2020, producing a gross margin of 61%, a 1 percentage point decrease from the prior-year driven by increased content spend.

➤PANDORA SEGMENT

Advertising Revenue Increased 30% to $1.54 Billion. Full year ad revenue at the Pandora segment, which includes off-platform results, increased by 30% year-over-year to $1.54 billion. Ad revenue was boosted by strong monetization of $102.74 per thousand hours at Pandora, compared to $79.24 from the prior year. Ad revenue also benefited from the acquisition of Stitcher in the fourth quarter of 2020.

Growing Off-Platform and Podcasting Revenue. In 2021, Stitcher and the company's off-platform advertising businesses contributed $348 million of revenue, representing nearly 23% of the segment's total revenue. Off-platform revenue, excluding Stitcher, increased approximately $60 million or 36% compared to 2020.

Total Advertising-Supported Listener Hours of 11.55 Billion. Monthly Active Users (MAUs) at Pandora were 52.3 million in 2021, down from 58.9 million in the prior year. Total ad-supported listener hours were 11.55 billion in 2021, down from 12.50 billion in 2020. Average monthly hours per ad-supported active user were 19.9 in 2021, up from 19.4 in 2020.

Self-Pay Subscribers Increase Modestly. Self-pay subscribers to the Pandora Plus and Pandora Premium services increased by 45,000 in 2021 to end the period with 6.3 million.

Gross Profit Grew 30%. Subscriber revenue increased by 3%, advertising revenue increased by 30% and total cost of services increased by 18% during 2021. This resulted in gross profit in the Pandora segment of $743 million, up 30% over 2020, and produced a gross margin for the year of 36%, up 6% from prior year.

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