Prepared remarks
Greetings, and welcome to Alliance Entertainment's Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2025 Financial Results Conference Call. As a reminder, this conference is being recorded. I will now pass the call over to Paul Kuntz, a member of Alliance Entertainment's IR team.
Thank you. Before we begin the formal presentation, I would like to remind everyone that statements made on the call and webcast may include predictions, estimates or other information that might be considered forward-looking. While these forward-looking statements represent the company's current judgment on what the future holds, they are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements which reflect the company's opinions only as of the date of this presentation. Please keep in mind that the company is not obligating itself to revise or publicly release the results of any revision to these forward-looking statements in light of new information or future events. Throughout today's discussion, management will attempt to present some important factors relating to the business that may affect predictions. You should also review the company's Form 10-K for a more complete discussion of these factors and other risks, particularly under the heading Risk Factors. During this conference call, management will discuss non-GAAP financial measures, including a discussion of adjusted EBITDA. Management believes non-GAAP disclosures enable investors to better understand Alliance Entertainment's core operating performance. Please refer to the investor presentation for a reconciliation of each non-GAAP measure to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure. A press release detailing these results crossed the wire this afternoon at 4:01 p.m. Eastern Time and is available in the Investor Relations section of Alliance Entertainment's website at aent.com. Your host today is Jeff Walker, Chief Executive Officer; and Amanda Gnecco, Chief Financial Officer, who will present the results of operations for the fourth quarter and fiscal year 2025 ended June 30, 2025. At this time, I will turn the call over to Alliance Entertainment's CEO, Jeff Walker.
Thank you, Paul, and good afternoon, everyone. I'm pleased to welcome you to today's call. Alliance Entertainment is the premier distributor and fulfillment partner at the center of the growing collectibles ecosystem. With over 340,000 SKUs in stock and fulfillment relationships across 35,000 retail storefronts and 200 online platforms, we connect fans to the entertainment properties and pop culture products they collect from vinyl, CDs, DVDs, Blu-ray and collectible SteelBooks, the video games, licensed toys, tabletop games, and stylized vinyl figurines. Our business is built to serve collectors, enthusiasts and retailers alike. We simplify how physical media and collectibles are sold, stocked and shipped, delivering speed, scale and accuracy across B2B and DTC channels. We've built category leadership in film, music and collectibles over the past two decades through a series of 15 acquisitions that form the foundation for our capital-light omnichannel fulfillment network. We believe Alliance is uniquely positioned at the intersection of retail, content and fandom. We've aligned our strategy around where the market is and where it's heading, and that clarity is driving stronger margins, improved earnings and long-term value creation. This slide offers a quick snapshot of our performance. Amanda will walk through the full Q4 and fiscal year financials later in the call, but I wanted to briefly highlight a few key metrics that reflect the strength of our business model and the progress we're making. In fiscal 2025, we delivered $15.1 million in net income, a 229% increase from the prior year. Adjusted EBITDA grew 51% to $36.5 million with gross margin improving from 11.7% to 12.5% year-over-year. Our earnings per share rose to $0.30 more than tripling the $0.09 we delivered in fiscal 2024. These results reflect a more profitable product mix, continued automation benefits and disciplined expense management across the business. We also made significant progress on the balance sheet. We reduced revolver debt by 22%, improved inventory alignment and ended the year with $26.8 million in cash flow from operating activities. Our capital-light model, combined with improving working capital efficiency, has enabled us to unlock stronger profitability without sacrificing growth or flexibility. In Q4 alone, we delivered $5.8 million in net income and earnings per share of $0.11, up from just $0.05 in the prior year. Gross margin expanded to 15.8% and adjusted EBITDA margin exceeded 5%, up from 0.9% in the prior year, both demonstrating the strength of our product mix, cost structure and operating discipline. We believe these margins are sustainable going forward, and we expect them to hold as we scale into fiscal 2026 and beyond. This momentum is already carrying into the new fiscal year. Consumer demand remains strong as we head into the holiday season. We have a highly anticipated release from Taylor Swift on October 3 that will be a great start to what should be a very strong second quarter fiscal year 2026. Taken together, our infrastructure, exclusive content partnerships and financial discipline provide a strong foundation for continued scale and profitability. As retailers and licensors seek efficient omnichannel solutions, Alliance is increasingly the partner they trust to meet that demand. We've built a differentiated platform, not just to participate in the collectibles and physical media market, but to lead it. And with the momentum we're carrying into fiscal 2026 we are just getting started. With that, I'll now turn it over to Amanda to walk through our fourth quarter and fiscal year financial results in more detail.
Thanks, Jeff. Let's begin with our fourth quarter results. For the quarter ended June 30, 2025, we generated net revenue of $227.8 million compared to $236.9 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2024. Gross profit increased 34% year-over-year to $36 million with gross margin improving to 15.8%, up from 11.4% in the prior year period. This margin expansion reflects our improved product mix and continued benefits from our operational efficiency initiatives. Profitability improved significantly in the quarter. Net income was $5.8 million or $0.11 per diluted share compared to net income of $2.5 million or $0.05 per share in Q4 last year. That is a 130% increase in net income. Adjusted EBITDA grew nearly fivefold to $12.2 million, up from $2.1 million in the prior year period. This improvement was driven by margin gains, automation benefits and disciplined cost management. At the operational level, our automation investments and warehouse consolidation continue to deliver measurable cost savings, helping drive an approximately 1% year-over-year reduction in distribution and fulfillment expenses as a percentage of revenue. Overall, our fourth quarter reflects strong execution, meaningful profitability gains and improved efficiency even against a backdrop of modestly lower top line revenue. Now turning to the full fiscal year ended June 30, 2025. We generated $1.06 billion in net revenue compared to $1.1 billion in fiscal year 2024. The modest year-over-year decline primarily reflects product mix shift, partially offset by strong performance in high-margin categories like physical movies and vinyl. Gross profit increased to $132.9 million, up from $128.9 million last year, with gross margin improving to 12.5% compared to 11.7% in fiscal year 2024. Earnings growth was especially strong. Net income rose to $15.1 million or $0.30 per diluted share, more than tripling the $4.6 million or $0.09 per share reported last year, which is a 229% increase. Adjusted EBITDA grew 51% year-over-year to $36.5 million compared to $24.3 million in fiscal year 2024. This underscores the progress we've made in expanding margins and improving operating leverage. We also strengthened our balance sheet and liquidity. Revolver debt was reduced by 22%. Operating expenses declined by more than 10% and interest expense fell nearly 14% year-over-year. These actions, combined with improved working capital discipline enabled us to generate $26.8 million in cash flow from operating activities, further supporting growth investments and financial flexibility. Our ability to deliver stronger earnings, expand margins and improve cash flow even in a flat revenue environment highlights the resilience of our model and discipline of our execution. With that, I'll turn it back to Jeff for closing remarks.
Thanks, Amanda. One of the most important drivers of our performance and our differentiation in the market is our exclusive distribution and licensing strategy. These agreements give us access to unique in-demand products that can't be sourced elsewhere, whether it's a limited edition box set, exclusive label content or collectible formats for major entertainment brands. This will continue to create increased margins and profits in the future. In fiscal 2025, our exclusive partnerships accounted for more than $350 million in revenue or more than one-third of our total sales. These deals not only strengthen our supplier relationships, they also create a competitive advantage around our catalog and reinforce our role as a preferred partner for retailers. A great example is our home entertainment license agreement with Paramount Pictures, which went into effect on January 1, 2025. Under this partnership, Alliance is now the exclusive U.S. and Canadian distributor of Paramount's full physical media catalog including DVD, Blu-ray, Ultra HD and SteelBook titles. We are already seeing a meaningful contribution from this relationship, and we believe there's still significant room for growth as we expand placement and assortment across our refill network. With our complete B2B and DTC sales solutions, we can maximize the ability of movie and TV fans to build their video collection. We also continue to serve as the exclusive distributor for a broad range of partners in music and film, including over 150 movie studios and music labels. These include marquee brands as well as rising independents, giving us a diverse and defensible portfolio of content across formats. On the film and television side, the latest season from Paramount's Yellowstone franchise topped the DVD chart on Amazon for multiple weeks after launch, underscoring both the enduring appeal of premium physical media and Alliance's ability to deliver blockbuster content to the market. We also saw early preorders for Mission Impossible Dead Reckoning: The Final Chapter outpacing prior installments, further highlighting the strength of our pipeline. An exciting recent addition to our exclusive portfolio is our vinyl figure brand Handmade by Robots, which we acquired in December of 2024. In its first two full quarters under Alliance, the brand has already launched its first anime collectibles with My Hero Academia, a limited edition Hello Kitty at San Diego Comic-Con and an exclusive Costco campaign featuring mega-size horror icons. Looking ahead, we're preparing for significant new releases in the first half of fiscal 2026, spanning beloved franchises such as DC Comics, Disney, Godzilla, Harry Potter, more Hello Kitty, Jurassic Park, Marvel, Peanuts, Sonic the Hedgehog, SpongeBob SquarePants, Star Trek, Star Wars and Toy Story. These initiatives reinforce our view that Handmade by Robots is well positioned to become a breakout brand in the licensed collectible space. In addition, we strengthened our collectibles portfolio through a new exclusive distribution agreement with Master Replicas, adding premium products from some of the most iconic sci-fi properties, including Blade Runner, Dune, Doctor Who, Stargate, Star Trek and Mass Effect. By continuing to add new exclusive partnerships, we are extending our reach across categories and expanding our leadership in high-value fan-driven collectibles. Across film, music, and collectibles, exclusivity is what sets Alliance apart. And it's a win for all parties. Retailers gain access to unique inventory, content owners tap into our scale and fulfillment expertise, and Alliance deepens its leadership across the physical media and collectibles market. In addition to exclusive content, our consumer direct fulfillment model is another key growth and margin driver for Alliance. This model allows our retail partners to offer a vastly expanded online assortment without holding physical inventory, while Alliance fulfills the orders directly to the end consumer. We ship on behalf of major retailers under their brand using our infrastructure, which means we're delivering value to both our partners and their consumers. It's a win for everybody. Retailers reduce inventory risk and expand their digital shelf, consumers get fast, reliable delivery, and Alliance benefits from higher margin revenue with greater fulfillment control and operational efficiency. During fiscal 2025, CDF accounted for 37% of gross revenue, up from 36% in fiscal 2024. That growth reflects broader retailer adoption and rising consumer demand for collectibles and specialty products that aren't often stocked in store. Most importantly, this is a scalable capital-light channel. It allows us to expand SKU count, serve the long tail of consumer demand and drive continued margin expansion, all without significant working capital investments. As retailers accelerate omnichannel and digital-first strategies, we believe our role as a trusted fulfillment partner will only grow stronger, and we are continuing to invest in the systems, automation and relationships that make this model even more efficient. Another critical driver of our margin expansion is the efficiency gains we've achieved through automation and warehouse optimization. Over the past two years, we've modernized our Kentucky fulfillment hub with advanced systems that increase throughput, reduce labor intensity and optimize storage. These investments have already delivered millions in annual savings while enabling us to process higher volumes with greater speed and accuracy. In fiscal 2025, automation was a key factor behind the approximately 1% reduction in distribution and fulfillment expense as a percentage of revenue that Amanda highlighted earlier. Just as important, it has given us the flexibility to scale high-growth categories like collectibles and direct-to-consumer fulfillment without adding significant overhead. In the fourth quarter, we also launched a company-wide AI initiative designed to drive both sales expansion and operational efficiency. This program builds on our existing investments in automation with the goal of improving merchandising, demand forecasting and fulfillment speed while lowering costs. Looking forward, technology is not just a cost lever for Alliance; it's a growth enabler. From automation to AI, these initiatives support the scalability of our consumer direct fulfillment channel, enhance service levels for our retail partners, and strengthen our ability to capture new opportunities across physical media and collectibles. As demand continues to shift towards specialty products and online channels, our infrastructure is built to handle it with efficiency and margin discipline. To wrap things up, I want to highlight one of the most important drivers of long-term value for Alliance, our disciplined merger and acquisition strategy. We have a proven track record of building scale through acquisitions with 15 completed to date. Each has been aligned with our goal of expanding content, capabilities and margins while reinforcing our leadership in physical media and collectibles. The acquisition of Handmade by Robots is a recent example. In just over two quarters, we've expanded its retail footprint and licensing pipeline, laying the groundwork for what we believe will be significant growth ahead. While the early results are encouraging, we're only at the beginning of realizing this brand's potential. Handmade by Robots exemplifies our M&A approach, identifying differentiated assets with passionate fan followings and scaling them efficiently through our platform. Looking ahead, we continue to evaluate a robust pipeline of opportunities, including proprietary brands, licensing partnerships and tuck-in distribution deals. We look at each opportunity with the same disciplined lens: accretion, operational synergy and long-term strategic fit. By focusing on capital-light growth, we can leverage our infrastructure and retail relationships to maximize returns. As we move into fiscal 2026, our strategy remains clear: scale high-margin categories, deepen exclusive content partnerships and strengthen our fulfillment model. With the margin profile we delivered in Q4, including a gross margin of 15.8% and adjusted EBITDA margin above 5%, we're entering the new fiscal year with a performance baseline we believe is sustainable. This level of profitability reflects structural advantages in our model and we expect it to carry forward into fiscal 2026 and beyond. This margin enhancement will significantly grow our earnings per share in fiscal 2026 and create lasting value for our shareholders. Before turning it back to the operator, I'd like to thank our employees, customers and partners for their support and execution throughout fiscal 2025. We're proud of the progress we've made and excited about the opportunities ahead. Operator, let's open the line for questions.
Questions and answers
Our first question comes from the line of Thomas Forte with D.A. Davidson.
Sure. Thomas Forte from Maxim Group. I have three questions. So I'll go one at a time. It sounds like things are progressing really well with the Paramount deal. How should investors think about your ability to sign similar deals with other studios?
This is Jeff Walker, CEO. We are diligently working on that. We see that as a long-term opportunity in the consolidation of physical DVD distribution. So we are definitely looking and working on those conversations.
My second question is, I think the answer to this one is that you're not very much impacted, but I did want to ask about tariffs. So how are you impacted by tariffs? And what efforts are you undertaking to mitigate the impact of tariffs?
Yes. We're in a unique space in music and video where we have really no impact from tariffs in that aspect of our business. They're very minimal if there are some in there. On the collectibles side of our business, for Handmade by Robots in particular, we do manufacture in China. So we are incurring the current China tariffs. We've been able to manage that within our cost structures and so forth. So it hasn't had a major impact on that brand. And then other collectible products that we buy from the manufacturers and wholesalers, we are seeing some price increases. Ultimately, those price increases come to us, and they do affect the refill price of the product. We don't feel they've been very significant, but they have impacted the overall consumer demand and sales of those products. So while the pricing is going to move up a little bit, we don't see a huge decline in the volume of those products.
Great. So my last question, thanks for taking my questions. From a capital allocation standpoint, can you talk about your preferences regarding reinvesting in the business, paying down debt, strategic M&A where you have an excellent track record, and then potentially buying back your stock?
I'll start with the paying down debt. We operate with a line of credit and asset-based line of credit. So every day, all of the cash we've collected for that day sweeps through our line of credit and reduces our line balance and our interest cost there. That's why you also see a fairly minimal amount of cash on hand in our financials; that's the last day of the quarter's cash on hand. From the aspect of buying back stock, we have a pretty small amount of stock out in the market today. So we really have no desire to buy back stock. And I think from our cash generation, we're actively looking at how we can deploy that cash into strategic acquisitions as well as some internal investments to help grow the business. So we're really reinvesting our cash at this point.
And there are no further questions for now over the phone. I will turn it over to Paul Kuntz for any questions via the webcast.
Thank you. Great. And we actually have had several questions come in already. Our first question, how sustainable is the lift you've seen from the Paramount Pictures exclusive license? Do you expect incremental growth in fiscal 2026, or was fiscal 2025 more of a one-time step-up?
On the Paramount Pictures license agreement, we ramped that up in the first quarter of calendar 2025. The second quarter that we just completed and reported, we had all of the Paramount product sales on the Alliance side there. So as we move into the current quarter that we're in right now as well as calendar Q4, we will be generating those sales, and we will see the impact of that this year. We will also see a small impact in Q1 of 2026, and then we'll be comping in Q2 of 2026, but we just completed the last quarter. So it's a huge win for us. We're really focused on growing the sales and opportunities from that partnership. We're excited about the Skydance acquisition of Paramount. Initial indications look like they will invest in additional content, theatrical movies and television. We do think the slate of products coming through Paramount will be growing in the future. So that's an unexpected win for Alliance on that side as well.
The earnings release mentions Walmart selected you as its video category adviser. What does that mean for the company?
This was a big win for us to be selected by Walmart as the video category adviser. This went live just recently on August 11. What it means is that Walmart has a designated category adviser that helps with overall planning in the video category with strategic planning, space planning, and everything to do with how that department will operate on the video side. It includes all of the studios working together. We were designated the category adviser, and it’s managed on behalf of all the studios. It was a big honor for us to receive this from Walmart, as they believe in the capabilities that Alliance has, and the long-term strategy that we share with Walmart regarding physical movies and TV series.
We have another question that came in. Fantastic results. It seems like your M&A activity is highly curated. Can you share the profile of your current M&A pipeline? And would your current capital structure support such inorganic initiatives?
M&A has been quite an art rather than a science. There are definitely mathematical elements to M&A, but the art aspect is about putting the two companies together, understanding the strategies, and the willingness of the seller. Sometimes acquisition conversations take years to come to fruition. We're actively in numerous conversations as that's how acquisitions work; you must engage in multiple talks to see what aligns with us at the right times. I will say, however, we have a robust network of conversations happening right now.
Thank you, Jeff. The next question: with the significant jump in earnings per share and adjusted EBITDA, can you walk us through how much of that margin expansion is structural versus cyclical or onetime factors?
They're definitely not one-time factors. It's a structural improvement in the company overall. The margin enhancement in gross profit originates from different licensing and moving into more higher-margin products. As communicated, we also achieved significant cost savings, including the exit of a large warehouse facility in Minnesota, which has generated considerable operational savings for us in fiscal 2025. We are exiting another smaller facility this month, but that won't provide as significant savings as the large facility did.
Thank you, Jeff. Somewhat related to the last question, you mentioned launching an AI program to boost sales and efficiency. Can you explain in simple terms how AI can help the business?
AI is here to stay, and I firmly believe the companies that utilize this technology will be the ones that grow. Over the last six months, we've implemented an AI initiative here at Alliance. We're primarily using Copilot as our AI internally, as we are predominantly a Microsoft house. Over 250 different people in the organization are using Copilot right now. We have been doing weekly trainings and learning about its applications quickly. I’m optimistic about the progress we'll see in the upcoming year as different people in the organization learn to utilize it more effectively. We also have GitHub in place for our programming side. One significant project involves integrating HubSpot for our sales and marketing initiatives, which will enhance our consolidated approach to sales functions. Essentially, we are working to efficiently double down on our sales focus right now, utilizing technology to improve those efforts. Our entire team is excited about the potential of AI and are eager to see the benefits over the coming year.
You've made progress diversifying into collectibles, but physical media still accounts for the vast majority of sales. How do you balance investing in legacy categories versus building out higher growth, higher-margin segments?
We still see growth in legacy categories. Starting with vinyl, we're still witnessing demand and unique collectible products. We're working on some unique initiatives in vinyl that will be rolling out shortly. We are also investing significantly in the video category where we see ample opportunities.
What gives you confidence that Handmade by Robots can break out and become a bigger part of Alliance?
I'm a huge fan of Handmade by Robots. I love the brand and its design. The business model operates in a licensed IP space, which allows for virtually endless opportunities for new characters and versions. We are setting up our first Handmade by Robots booth at New York Comic-Con, showcasing our key titles and products that are coming out this quarter. We are optimistic about a strong growth strategy for this brand. Importantly, we have a high margin associated with it, allowing us to focus on product design, licensing, and sales without having to deal with wider logistical back-end costs. We have a large warehouse and operational system to manage product and fulfill customer orders already in place, making it easier for us to focus solely on scaling the brand.
You mentioned that exclusive partnerships accounted for over one-third of revenue. Can you explain why exclusivity is such a big advantage for Alliance?
We started as a one-stop distributor and wholesaler. Initially, competition was fierce among wholesalers. As Alliance developed exclusive divisions, we became the exclusive seller of products. This exclusivity allows us to generate significant sales through major brands and retailers, enhancing our relationships and overall volume. We'll continue to pursue exclusive partnerships as this opens access to major accounts like Amazon, Walmart, Target, and Costco.
Thank you. We have reached the end of the question-and-answer session. This concludes today's conference, and you may disconnect your lines at this time. We thank you for your participation.
Thank you, everybody. Thank you.