Audacy cut 80% of its debt in Chapter 11 and emerged private to chase digital audio

Audacy, one of the two largest US radio groups and home to one of the country’s biggest podcast studios, was carrying roughly $1.9B of funded debt through a period of declining broadcast revenue. It filed for Chapter 11 in January 2024.

Its prepackaged plan was confirmed by the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas in February 2024, and with FCC approval Audacy completed the restructuring on September 30, 2024 and went private. The transaction equitized about $1.6B of funded debt, cutting it 80% from roughly $1.9B to about $350M and landing net leverage near 2.7x.

The point of the reset was growth. CEO David J. Field framed the emergence as freeing the company to accelerate its digital transformation. In the first quarter of 2024, adjusted EBITDA rose 173% year over year to $9.6M as digital revenue climbed 10% while cash operating expenses fell 2%, and the scaled podcast, direct-to-consumer streaming and sports-radio assets became the engine it intended to fund.

Audacy equitized about $1.6B of funded debt (an 80% cut to roughly $350M), hit 2.7x net leverage, and posted Q1 2024 adjusted EBITDA up 173% as digital revenue rose 10%.

Declining broadcast revenue collided with about $1.9B of funded debt.

The prepackaged plan cut funded debt 80% to about $350M.

Regulatory approval from the FCC cleared it to emerge and go private.

Lower leverage of about 2.7x freed cash for digital and podcast growth.

In Q1 2024 adjusted EBITDA rose 173% to $9.6M as digital revenue grew 10%.

For a legacy media business, a growth budget can come from a balance-sheet reset: Audacy used Chapter 11 to trade debt for equity and emerge private with cash to invest in podcast and digital audio.

Audacy emerged from Chapter 11 on September 30, 2024, a private company with roughly $350M of debt and about 2.7x net leverage. The plan let it keep its radio stations, podcast studio and streaming platform while converting most debt to equity. It then pursued its digital transformation without the overhang of a $1.9B balance sheet, though it remained a legacy broadcaster competing for digital-audio attention against podcast platforms.