M6 shares climb following better-than-expected quarterly performance
The broadcasting group rose 1.74% after reporting first-quarter results that beat estimates, alongside a favorable audience outlook for the second quarter.
First-quarter revenue at M6 came in at 297.7 million euros, down 5.5% year-on-year, amid what the company described as a challenging economic environment. Advertising revenue fell 5.9% to 239 million euros.
Despite these headwinds, current operating income (EBIT) rose 2.1% to 49.1 million euros, pushing the margin to 16.5%, a 1.2 percentage point improvement. This increase in profitability reflects 'the group's transformation' and 'rigorous cost management,' noted Chairman of the Executive Board David Larramendy in a statement.
In response to persistent weakness in the advertising market, M6 announced an 80 million euro savings plan in February through 2030, targeting production cost optimization, process simplification, and technical cost reductions.
Oddo BHF, which maintains its neutral rating on the stock, indicates that the broadcast of the 2026 World Cup in the second quarter should bolster audiences and advertising receipts, providing a boost to cash flow, though it will weigh on full-year operating profitability. The brokerage has left its 2026 annual forecasts unchanged.
Since the start of the year, the group's shares have gained 6%.
Métropole Télévision is one of the French largest audio-visual groups. Net sales break down by activity as follows:
- operation of TV channels (79%): owns, at the end of 2025, 4 free-to-air channels (M6, W9, 6ter and Gulli), 9 pay channels (Paris Première, Téva, sérieclub, Canal J, Tiji, M6 Music, MCM, MCM Top and RFM TV) and 4 digital channels (M6+, M6+ Max, Gulli Max and Gulli Replay);
- operation of radio stations (12.4%): owns RTL, RTL2 and Fun Radio and broadcasts podcasts;
- program production and audiovisual rights marketing (5.7%);
- other (2.9%): marketing of related products, magazine publishing, event organizing, Internet site publishing, telemarketing, etc.
Net sales break down by source of revenue between sales of advertising space (82.2%) and other (17.8%; primarily sales of subscriptions, TV content and film content).
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