Urban One 2025 fourth quarter results reflected lower revenue across several operating segments, partially offset by event timing benefits at Reach Media and cost reductions in multiple areas. Management also highlighted a year-end debt transaction that it said improved the company’s capital structure and reduced outstanding debt, while noting early 2026 advertising trends started slower than hoped.
Management commentary and outlook
Chief Executive Officer Alfred C. Liggins said the company finished 2025 “just inside” its prior guidance, reporting full-year adjusted EBITDA of $56.7 million. He reiterated that Urban One had previously provided 2026 adjusted EBITDA guidance of $70 million, but said the company would wait until after the first quarter to update any information, citing “a lot of moving parts.”
Liggins also emphasized a late-2025 refinancing and debt repurchase effort, saying Urban One was able to repurchase a significant amount of its 2028 notes at a discount, extend maturities, and upsize its asset-based lending (ABL) facility. He said the transaction put the company in a more stable position to continue deleveraging and to pursue opportunities, “particularly as it relates to deregulation in the radio business.”
Fourth quarter revenue and segment performance
Chief Financial Officer Peter Thompson reported consolidated net revenue of approximately $97.8 million for the three months ended December 31, 2025, down 16.5% year-over-year.
In the radio broadcasting segment, net revenue was $35.1 million, a decrease of 26.5% year-over-year. Excluding political advertising, radio net revenue was down 10.1%. Thompson cited Miller Kaplan data showing local ad sales down 19% versus the company’s markets down 12.6%, while national ad sales were down 40.1% versus the market down 29.2%. He said the largest ad category for the quarter was services, up 18.1% driven primarily by legal services; healthcare rose 3.5% and financial increased 15.7%, while other major categories declined.
Reach Media net revenue increased to $13.8 million, up 43.9% year-over-year, with adjusted EBITDA of approximately $0.9 million. Thompson attributed the increase primarily to higher event revenue due to the timing of the Fantastic Voyage Cruise, which occurred in the fourth quarter of 2025 compared with the second quarter of 2024. He said that increase in revenue and expense was offset by lower political revenue and lower network advertising revenue.
Digital segment net revenue was $14.7 million, down 19.6%. Thompson said the decline was driven by lower direct revenue streams due to decreased DEI-related spending, lower political revenue, and lower client spending more broadly. Direct digital sales declined by $2.7 million, and digital adjusted EBITDA decreased to $1.8 million from $2.7 million in the prior year.
Cable television segment revenue was approximately $34.9 million, down 16.8%. Thompson said cable TV advertising revenue fell 21.8%, and prime delivery declined about 20% from the third quarter for persons 25-54. Affiliate revenue declined 9%, driven by subscriber churn, partially offset by higher subscriber rates and the launch of NOW TV. Nielsen-measured TV One subscribers ended the fourth quarter at 30.2 million, down from 34.1 million at the end of the third quarter. Thompson said the decline reflected churn as well as a conversion of virtual deals being sold as connected television and therefore excluded from Nielsen’s numbers. He added that CLEO TV had 33 million Nielsen subscribers at period end.
Profitability, expenses, and impairments
Consolidated adjusted EBITDA was $15.6 million for the quarter, down 41.8% year-over-year. Consolidated broadcast and digital operating income was approximately $23.8 million, a decrease of 38.3%.
Operating expenses (excluding depreciation, amortization, stock-based compensation, and impairment) were approximately $90.2 million for the quarter, compared with approximately $91.1 million in the prior-year period. Thompson noted the quarter included $70.7 million of debt refinancing costs and $6.7 million of Fantastic Voyage Cruise expenses. Excluding those items, operating expenses were down about 17%, driven by lower variable expenses tied to revenue (including commissions, sales rep fees, and digital traffic acquisition costs), along with headcount-related reductions and lower third-party professional fees.
- Radio operating expenses fell 17.8% (down $5.7 million), driven by lower commissions and headcount-related costs.
- Reach operating expenses rose 86.1% due to Fantastic Voyage timing; excluding event expenses, Reach expenses fell 12.1% due to talent and headcount-related reductions.
- Digital operating expenses declined 18.5% due to lower traffic acquisition costs, commissions, headcount-related savings, and video production costs.
- Cable television operating expenses decreased 8.3%, driven by lower headcount costs, commissions, bad debt, and fewer program development write-offs.
The company recorded $55.3 million of non-cash impairment charges, including $53.1 million in the cable television unit, $1.7 million in the digital reporting unit, and $0.5 million at Reach Media.
Net loss was approximately $54.4 million, or $12.24 per share, compared with a net loss of $35.7 million, or $7.81 per share, in the fourth quarter of 2024. Thompson reported an income tax benefit of approximately $9.2 million in the quarter and cash income tax refunds of about $200,000. Capital expenditures were approximately $3.2 million in the quarter and $10.1 million for the year.
Debt transaction, leverage, and liquidity
Thompson detailed a refinancing and tender exchange offer that closed on December 18, 2025 with holders representing more than 97% of the outstanding 2028 senior secured notes. The company tendered for $185 million of the 2028 notes at 60%, and issued:
- $60.6 million aggregate principal amount of 10.5% first lien senior secured notes due 2030
- $291 million aggregate principal amount of 7.625% second lien secured notes due 2031
After the transaction, $11.8 million of the 2028 notes remained outstanding. Thompson said the company accounted for the transaction under troubled debt restructuring rules, meaning it did not recognize the tender gain in the income statement and instead capitalized it on the balance sheet as a premium, which he said would reduce future P&L interest expense over time.
Interest expense in the quarter declined to approximately $8.7 million from $11.5 million a year earlier due to lower debt balances. The company made cash interest payments of approximately $13.4 million in the quarter. Thompson also said that during the first three quarters of 2025, the company repurchased $96.7 million of its 2028 notes at an average price of 53.6% of par, and that the fourth quarter transaction reduced outstanding long-term debt to $363.4 million at year-end.
Thompson added that the company drew $10 million from its new ABL facility at the time of the transaction, repaid that draw in the first quarter of 2026, and purchased an additional $4.3 million of 2028 notes at 51% of par, bringing current total outstanding debt to $359.1 million.
As of December 31, 2025, Thompson said outstanding debt was approximately $373.4 million and unrestricted cash was $25.5 million, resulting in net debt of approximately $347.9 million. Based on last-twelve-month reported adjusted EBITDA of $56.7 million, he said net leverage was 6.1x.
Stock split and share repurchases
Thompson said the company did not repurchase any Class A common shares during the quarter, but repurchased 13,777 shares of Class D common stock for approximately $100,000, at an average price of $8.20 per share on a post-split basis. He also noted that in January 2026, the company completed a 1-for-10 reverse stock split and “regained compliance with the Nasdaq listing requirements.”
The call ended without any analyst questions. Liggins said management remained available offline and that the company would provide updates on trends and guidance in the next quarter.
The results were discussed on Urban One’s fourth quarter earnings call. The first time the company was referenced on the call was as Urban One; the parent is also known in public markets as Radio One (NASDAQ:UONE).
About Radio One (NASDAQ:UONE)
Urban One, Inc, formerly known as Radio One, Inc, is a media company primarily serving African-American and urban audiences across the United States. The company’s core business activities center on radio broadcasting, operating a portfolio of urban-format radio stations that deliver music, news, and community-focused programming. Urban One’s radio network spans key metropolitan markets including Washington, DC, Atlanta, Philadelphia, and Minneapolis, among others.
In addition to its terrestrial radio operations, Urban One has expanded into digital media to engage listeners online.
