Storytel Group reports solid operational performance, surpassing 2.5 million subscribers in the first quarter 2025

STORY BRegulatory press release2025-04-29 08:00

“The first quarter delivered solid financial results, reflecting strong momentum across both our Streaming and Publishing segments”, says Bodil Eriksson Torp, CEO Storytel Group

Highlights
Unless otherwise specified, numbers are for Q1 2025 and are compared to Q1 2024

Group revenue up 7% to 953 (892) MSEK, and equals 7% at constant exchange rates (CER).
Streaming revenue up 6% and Publishing revenue up 16%.
Gross profit up 12% to 423 (378) MSEK, equaling a margin of 44.4% (42.4%).
Adjusted EBITDA increased by 44% to 150 (104) MSEK, equaling a margin of 15.7% (11.7%).
Items Affecting Comparability (IACs) of -15 (-55) MSEK, fully related to long term incentive programs and not affecting cash flow
Net profit for the period amounted to 19 (-23) MSEK.
Earnings per share, before and after dilution, amounted to 0.20 (-0.32) SEK
The Board of Directors of Storytel Group proposes to the Annual General Meeting a one-off dividend of SEK 1.00 per share.
In the quarter, Storytel Group acquired a majority stake in the Swedish publisher Bokfabriken. Following a dialogue with the Swedish Competition Authority (SCA) in February, Storytel has decided to voluntarily give the SCA an opportunity to review the transaction, even though there was no obligation to do so.

Financial summary

MSEK	Q1 2025	Q1 2024	Change
Group Revenue¹	953	892	7%
Streaming Revenue²	862	812	6%
Publishing Revenue³	283	245	16%
Gross profit	423	378	12%
Gross margin %	44.4	42.4	2.0p
Operating profit	55	-24	n.a
Adjusted EBITDA	150	104	44%
Adjusted EBITDA margin %	15.7	11.7	4.0p
EBITDA	135	51	164%
Earnings per share, basic (SEK)	0.20	-0.32	n.a
Earnings per share, diluted (SEK)	0.20	-0.32	n.a
Cash flow from operations before changes in working capital	88	28	214%
Cash flow for the period	-73	-97	-25%
Net Interest-Bearing Debt (NIBD)	116	348	-67%
NIBD/adjusted EBITDA ratio	0.18	0.99	-82%

¹ The adjustments from segment level to group level are 1) Removing Storytel Norway at 50%, 2) Removing internal publishing revenue from Net Sales and adding internal publishing revenue as cost reduction within Cost of Sales, 3) Costs related to central group overhead functions 4) Adding result from Norway in accordance with the equity method. See Note 5 to the financial statements for additional details.
² Streaming revenue includes 50% of Storytel Norway’s revenue in line with Storytels ownership.
³ Publishing revenue includes both external and group-internal revenue.

About Storytel
Storytel is one of the world’s largest audiobook and e-book streaming services and offers more than one million titles on a global scale. Our vision is to make the world a more empathetic and creative place, with great stories to be shared and enjoyed by anyone, anywhere and anytime.

The streaming business within the Storytel Group is conducted under the brands Storytel, Mofibo and Audiobooks.com. The publishing business is managed by Storytel Books, and by the audiobook publisher Storyside. The Storytel Group operates in over 25 markets, with a focus on ten core markets: the five Nordic countries, the Netherlands, Turkey, Poland, Bulgaria, and the USA through Audiobooks.com. The headquarters are located in Stockholm, Sweden.

Storytel Group reports solid operational performance, surpassing 2.5 million subscribers in the first quarter 2025

STORY BRegulatory press release2025-04-29 08:00

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“The first quarter delivered solid financial results, reflecting strong momentum across both our Streaming and Publishing segments”, says Bodil Eriksson Torp, CEO Storytel Group

Highlights
Unless otherwise specified, numbers are for Q1 2025 and are compared to Q1 2024

Group revenue up 7% to 953 (892) MSEK, and equals 7% at constant exchange rates (CER).
Streaming revenue up 6% and Publishing revenue up 16%.
Gross profit up 12% to 423 (378) MSEK, equaling a margin of 44.4% (42.4%).
Adjusted EBITDA increased by 44% to 150 (104) MSEK, equaling a margin of 15.7% (11.7%).
Items Affecting Comparability (IACs) of -15 (-55) MSEK, fully related to long term incentive programs and not affecting cash flow
Net profit for the period amounted to 19 (-23) MSEK.
Earnings per share, before and after dilution, amounted to 0.20 (-0.32) SEK
The Board of Directors of Storytel Group proposes to the Annual General Meeting a one-off dividend of SEK 1.00 per share.
In the quarter, Storytel Group acquired a majority stake in the Swedish publisher Bokfabriken. Following a dialogue with the Swedish Competition Authority (SCA) in February, Storytel has decided to voluntarily give the SCA an opportunity to review the transaction, even though there was no obligation to do so.

Financial summary

MSEK	Q1 2025	Q1 2024	Change
Group Revenue¹	953	892	7%
Streaming Revenue²	862	812	6%
Publishing Revenue³	283	245	16%
Gross profit	423	378	12%
Gross margin %	44.4	42.4	2.0p
Operating profit	55	-24	n.a
Adjusted EBITDA	150	104	44%
Adjusted EBITDA margin %	15.7	11.7	4.0p
EBITDA	135	51	164%
Earnings per share, basic (SEK)	0.20	-0.32	n.a
Earnings per share, diluted (SEK)	0.20	-0.32	n.a
Cash flow from operations before changes in working capital	88	28	214%
Cash flow for the period	-73	-97	-25%
Net Interest-Bearing Debt (NIBD)	116	348	-67%
NIBD/adjusted EBITDA ratio	0.18	0.99	-82%

¹ The adjustments from segment level to group level are 1) Removing Storytel Norway at 50%, 2) Removing internal publishing revenue from Net Sales and adding internal publishing revenue as cost reduction within Cost of Sales, 3) Costs related to central group overhead functions 4) Adding result from Norway in accordance with the equity method. See Note 5 to the financial statements for additional details.
² Streaming revenue includes 50% of Storytel Norway’s revenue in line with Storytels ownership.
³ Publishing revenue includes both external and group-internal revenue.