Profits plunge at embattled Seven West Media

Its television network was the subject of a Four Corners expose on Monday, airing allegations of bullying and sexism and a toxic workplace culture.

The week has not improved for Seven, with pre-tax earnings falling by a third to $187 million.

"There is no doubt that FY 24 was a tough year for Seven West Media and probably many in the sector," managing director and chief executive officer Jeff Howard told investors on a call.

Seven West Media boss Jeff Howard told investors the past year was challenging for the firm. (Lukas Coch/AAP PHOTOS)

The company is home to some of the best media professionals in Australia, said Mr Howard, but some employees have been told to leave.

"The actions of some individuals do not reflect the values, behaviour and attitude of the business as a whole," he said.

"We are focused on building a stronger, high performance-based culture that enables our great people to thrive and where unacceptable behaviour is not tolerated."

In April, the company's previous chief executive and managing director James Warburton stepped down earlier than expected, ending a tenure plagued by scandal.

It followed allegations heard in the Federal Court that the Seven Network paid for illicit drugs and sex workers to secure an interview with former Liberal staffer Bruce Lehrmann.

Less than a year earlier in June 2023, former elite soldier Ben Roberts-Smith resigned from his role as general manager of Seven West Media's Queensland operations.

This was prompted by a Federal Court ruling that news reports he had committed war crimes were substantially true. The Victoria Cross recipient is waiting on a judgment in an appeal against these findings.

In June, Seven West Media restructured into three divisions and implemented cost-cutting measures across the board as it tries to reduce costs by about $100 million.

However, costs have climbed two per cent to $1.23 billion.

One area of spending is artificial intelligence, with Seven West embedding staff from the AI company Databricks into its business.

AI technology can accurately predict audiences on the streaming platform Seven Plus 28 days in advance, Mr Howard said.

Overall, Seven West's group revenue is down five per cent to $1.4 billion on the previous full year, while net debt has climbed to $301 million.

Seven West's stable of publications includes The West Australian in Perth. (Tony McDonough/AAP PHOTOS)

Perth titles The West had broadly flat revenue of $172 million with pre-tax earnings down 13 per cent to $27 million.

A bright spot for the company has been daily digital masthead The Nightly, which launched in February and attracted a monthly audience of 2.3 million in June.

After breaking even in its first six months it's expected the publication will make a profit in 2025. 

Seven's AFL broadcasting and this summer's cricket season, which features Australia against India, are also seeing momentum in advertising bookings.

Seven West Media shares are trading around 16 cents, having dropped from 40 cents a year ago.

No dividend will be paid to investors.