Thunderbird Entertainment could be up for sale as early as 2024, according to the company’s CEO and chair Jennifer Twiner McCarron (pictured).

Twiner McCarron told investors in a year-end financials call on Thursday (Oct. 5) that Thunderbird has received unsolicited offers of interest to acquire the Vancouver-based company, but is holding off on formally going to market due to the current macro environment in the media industry negatively impacting its value.

“I don’t mean waiting three years. I mean into the next calendar year — that’s it,” said Twiner McCarron, noting that the company is looking at a timeline of roughly three to six months to potentially go to market. “We would not be doing shareholders service for any inbound offers worth less than we know we’re actually worth.”

The comments follow the results of a recent strategic review of the company, which was enacted following Thunderbird’s proxy battle with shareholder Voss Capital and was conducted with the aid of ACF Investment Bank.

The review determined that, while Thunderbird was identified as a premium asset for acquisition, it is “in the best interest of the company and its respective shareholders to wait until Thunderbird’s strategic initiatives begin to materialize to demonstrate its true worth,” according to a news release detailing Thunderbird’s Q4 results.

The company also reported that the board of directors has approved the pursuit of a normal course issuer bid to repurchase shares through the TSX Venture Exchange (TSXV). Twiner McCarron said Thunderbird is pursuing the maximum possible amount, which would be 10% of the company’s public float. The application had not been accepted by TSXV as of press time.

Thunderbird reported a 12% increase in year-end revenue in fiscal 2023, coming to $166.7 million compared to $149 million in the previous fiscal year. The overall increase was attributed to the number of IP-owned projects delivered during the year, and the growth of the company’s service production work. Thunderbird reported a 14% decrease in revenue for Q4 2023, down to $37.7 million from $44.1 million in the prior Q4.

The company also reported a 69% decrease in annual free cash flow, falling to $9.6 million compared to $13.9 million in fiscal 2022, which was attributed to the repayment of interim production financing. Adjusted EBITDA also decreased, with $700,000 in fiscal 2023 compared to $2.4 million in the previous fiscal year, which was attributed to an increase in expenses and industry-wide production delays due to the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes.

The company is forecasting “double-digit revenue growth in fiscal 2024” and into 2025 and 2026, as well as a return to adjusted EBITDA levels prior to fiscal 2023, according to the release.

“We have made great strides with our owned-IP work, and we’re thrilled to have started production on several exciting IP projects that span multiple genres — including the sale of our first original-IP adult animated series,” said Twiner McCarron in a statement. “These projects were greenlit in 2023, and we expect net income to start hitting our books in fiscal 2025 and beyond. To see these efforts coming to fruition affirms the strategic decisions we have made on our path to becoming the next major global studio. We have several exciting announcements on the horizon, and look forward to sharing more about these productions when we are able.”

Image courtesy of Thunderbird Entertainment