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Idw Media Hldgs Inc B
3/16/2026
Greetings. Welcome to the IDW Media Holdings first quarter fiscal year 2026 conference call. At this time, all participants are on a listen-only mode. A question and answer session will begin shortly. Davide Jonas, CEO, and Andrew DeBaker, CFO, will be available to answer questions and provide company insight. Please note this conference is being recorded. Before we begin, I'd like to read to you the company's abbreviated safe harbor statement. I'd like to remind you that statements made during this conference call concerning future revenues, results from operations, financial position, markets, economic conditions, product releases, partnerships, and any other statement that may be construed as a prediction of future performance or events are forward-looking statements, which may involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors which may cause acts or results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements. Non-GAAP results will also be discussed on the call. The company believes the presentation of non-GAAP information provides useful supplementary data concerning the company's ongoing operations and is provided for informational purposes only. I now would like to turn it over to Andrew DeBaker, CFO, for opening remarks.
Thank you. Hello, and thank you for joining today's call. I am Andrew DeBaker, Chief Financial Officer here at IDW. While we typically move directly into the questions and discussions, We thought it would be helpful to begin with a brief overview of the quarter and share a few perspectives on how we see the remainder of the year developing. The first quarter started strong across the board. Revenue increased 13% year over year with growth across comics, books, digital, royalties, and direct-to-consumer channels, while returns actually declined compared to the prior year. We attribute part of the decrease in returns and the overall strength in revenue to a change in Amazon's purchasing patterns. As Amazon continues transitioning to smaller regional distribution centers, it has moved towards a more just-in-time inventory model. This has resulted in a shift in their holiday purchasing from September and October, which is our Q4, to November and December, which falls into our Q1. We expect this buying pattern to persist, although we don't really anticipate any material impact on overall annual sales. In fact, as Amazon carries less inventory than in prior years, the risk of future returns is likely reduced. Q1 included several new titles that meet expectations. TMNT number 13, which included a new creative team led by writer Gene Yang, TMNT versus Godzilla number one, and our latest volume of Sonic the Hedgehog trade paperback. We also saw strong performance in our backlist titles, including two of our perennial favorites, TMMT, The Last Ronin, and They Call This Enemy, both which had double-digit increases year over year. This strength in backlist sales also contributed to a strong gross margin of 45% for the quarter. IDW Publishing achieved a 47% gross margin, which is actually its highest Q1 margin since 2022. We remain disciplined in managing our creative and printing costs. Printing costs especially, though, continue to face upward pressure due in part to the ongoing concept in the Middle East affecting global shipping routes. As with most companies, we are working closely with our logistics and shipping partners to assess the potential impact and to take any steps necessary to maintain our publishing schedules while minimizing cost increases where possible. Operating expenses also continue to decline as the personnel changes implemented over the past several years have taken full effect, and our teams continue to find ways to cut costs in areas like marketing, IT, and rent and utilities. Discounting the impact the Diamond Comic Distributors bankruptcy had on our Q1 2025, this quarter's operating expenses actually declined more than 6% year over year. As a result of all of this, We enter the remainder of the year with positive net income compared to the loss we've seen in many past Q1s. So, we're encouraged by the progress the company has made over the past several years and are beginning to see the results of the strategic and operational improvements we've implemented. We also have several exciting initiatives, either recently launched or upcoming. These include our Godzilla RPG Kickstarter campaign, which is active right now, as you can find on kickstarter.com. It's our first campaign in more than five years, the launch of Rocketeer American Whiskey in the next few weeks, and the recent announcement of IDW Crime, our newest imprint focused on creator-driven noir, thriller, and dark mystery storytelling. We also just signed with Sanrio to create a comic book universe centered on Hello Kitty, which will launch later this year. All of this builds on the continued success of our IDW Dark imprint, which has delivered strong performance, with titles such as Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees and its sequel, Bite of Spring, Exorcism at 1600 Penn, and Exorcism at Buckingham Palace, along with licensed titles including Event Horizon and Smile. It was also recently announced that Exorcism at 1600 Penn is being adapted for film with Blumhouse. And we also have additional original and new licensed projects in development that we look forward to announcing and discussing with you all in the coming quarters. In short, it's a great time to be at IDW. And so with that, I will turn the call back for questions and discussion.
Certainly. We will now begin the question and answer session. If you'd like to ask a question, please press star 1 on your telephone keypad. A confirmation tone will indicate your line is in the question queue. You may press star 2 if you'd like to remove your question from the queue. For participants using speaker equipment, it may be necessary to pick up your handset before pressing the keys. Once again, if you have any questions or comments, please press star then 1 on your phone. One moment, please, while we poll for questions. Thank you. And once again, everyone, if you have any questions or comments, please press star then 1 on your phone. Please hold while we poll for questions. 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. Thank you for your participation.