STV revenue up 3% to £120.4m; profit £15.7m

STV chief executive Rob Woodward

Glasgow-based media company STV Group said its 2016 revenue rose 3% to £120.4 million and statutory pre tax profit rose 60% to £15.7 million amid a growth in its “non-broadcast activities.”

STV said 23% of its 2016 earnings were derived from non-broadcast activities, up from 11% six years ago.

“The growth of the non-broadcast business has been driven by the continued development of the digital services and a return to revenue growth in STV Productions,” said the company.

STV’s proposed total dividend for 2016 is 15p, an increase of 50% on 2015.

Looking ahead, STV said it expects its “national” airtime revenue to be down 7% in the first four months of the year and expects “regional” airtime revenue to be down 9% in the same period, following 15% growth in the same period of 2016. 

STV CEO Rob Woodward said: “Today’s strong results demonstrate robust and resilient performance in our core business and growth in STV Productions and our highly profitable digital activities.

“The consumer division has delivered its highest margin for 11 years, despite a weak airtime market in the second half of 2016.  

“We are continuing to de-risk the core business placing the company in a strong position to deal with any weakness in the advertising market in the short to mid-term whilst relentlessly pursuing our growth objectives.

“Our digital activities are performing strongly with a margin of 52%. 

“These products enable us to extend our reach and impact through our family of consumer services.”