Townsquare Media Repurchases $14.6 Million of Common Stock
Townsquare Media announces that it is repurchasing and retiring 1.5 million shares of Class A common stock held by MSG National Properties, LLC, for $9.76 per share. The purchase price reflects an 11% discount from the closing price of the Class A common stock on March 28, 2024. This transaction follows Townsquare’s June 2023 repurchase of 1.5 million shares from MSG at $9.70 per share, and March 2021 repurchase of 12.6 million shares and warrants from Oaktree Capital Management, L.P. at $6.40 per share. The purchase price of $14.6 million was funded entirely with cash on hand. In 2023,
Townsquare’s Cash Flow from Operations increased 35% year-over-year to $68 million, or approximately $4.07 per basic share based on shares outstanding as of March 28, 2024. Pro forma for this transaction, Cash Flow from Operations per basic share increased to approximately $4.47, representing accretion of approximately 10%. Following the transaction, the Company has 15.2 million shares outstanding. Townsquare CEO Bill Wilson says, “We are very pleased to share that we have repurchased just under 10% of our total shares outstanding in an immediately accretive transaction for our shareholders. Since 2021, we have repurchased 16.2 million shares at an average price of $7.19, while simultaneously reducing leverage. The strong cash generation characteristics of our business model, which produced $68 million of cash flow from operations in 2023, has afforded us the opportunity to accretively repurchase equity and debt, while also investing internally in our digital growth engine. In addition, we introduced a high-yielding dividend in 2023, and recently increased it by 5%. Our dividend has a yield of 7% as of March 28, 2024. With a strong cash balance of $40 million following this transaction, we will retain financial flexibility moving forward and we are confident in our ability to build shareholder value for our investors through long-term net revenue, Adjusted EBITDA and cash flow growth, net leverage reduction, future dividend payments, and potential future share repurchases.”
February 20, 2024. The aggregate amount of the payment to be made in connection with the quarterly dividend will be approximately $1.6 million. The quarterly dividend will be funded by cash on the company’s balance sheet. Including this dividend, the company will have paid approximately $127 million in dividends to shareholders since the first special dividend was paid in 2012.
since the first special dividend was paid in 2012. The board also adopts a new variable dividend policy for the allocation of cash flows aligned with the company’s goals of maintaining a strong balance sheet, increasing cash returns to shareholders, and continuing to grow the company through strategic acquisitions. Under the new policy, in addition to any quarterly and special dividends paid, the company will declare an additional dividend in the second quarter of each year of 70% of the preceding year’s annual Free 
Cash Flow, as reported in the company’s fourth quarter earnings release, net of acquisitions, special and quarterly dividends, debt paydowns and debt issuance costs, and stock buybacks. Saga president and CEO Christopher Forgy states, “We are very pleased that our strong capital position and operating performance allowed us to declare another regular quarterly cash dividend and a special cash dividend. We are excited to continue our commitment to provide a meaningful cash return to our shareholders through the declarations of these dividends. In addition, we have made tremendous progress during what has been a period of transition for our board of directors and executive management team. Our sustained financial strength has put us in a position to meet operational goals and to support efforts to return value to our shareholders. The cash dividends announced today, along with the new variable dividend policy, express the confidence of our board of directors and executive management team in Saga’s future.”