The iSentia Group Ltd (ASX: ISD) share price cratered 18% in morning trade today after the company managed to squeeze in more profit downgrade for FY 2017.
The media-monitoring specialist now expects to post full year underlying EBITDA (operating income) of $41.5 million on revenue of $155.1 million. This compares to prior guidance for full year EBITDA of $44 million on revenues of $162 million.
The company blamed the tough year and multiple downgrades on a "challenging competitive environment", although it claimed to have made improvements on this front for the six-month period ending June 30, 2017.
The other shocking news is that it is to write off the entire value of its King Content media business just two years after buying it in a deal valued up to $48 million if the company had met its profit targets. iSentia reported that the value of the King Content write down in FY 17 would be $37.8 million.
The King Content brand will disappear as offices in New York and Hong Kong are closed, while what remains of the loss-making business is taken under the iSentia umbrella.
iSentia has net debt of $51.7 million as at June 30 2017, which is around 1.2x its forecast full year EBITDA of $44 million. Since its June 2014 IPO its gone from market darling to doghouse and is likely to remain stuck there with investors until it can deliver on any of its forecasts.
