Denis O’Brien’s radio business Communicorp Group moved into profit last year after a simplification and restructuring of the group over the previous two years boosted its bottom line.
Accounts just filed show Communicorp reported total group revenue for the year of €43.8m – up 4pc on a like-for-like basis and more once the acquisition of an outstanding stake in Spin South West is accounted for.
A smaller rise in operating costs left the group generating an end of year after-tax profit of €1.559m. That compared to a €700,000 loss in 2018.
Finance Director Joe Dempsey said the sharp rise in profitability reflected the benefits of restructuring of the group in 2017 and 2018 that left Communicorp as a core Irish radio business after exiting what had been a complicated mix of international radio, media sales and consumer businesses.