MediaAlpha(MAX) - 2023 Q4 - Annual Report

Financial Performance - Revenue for 2023 was $388.1 million, a decrease of 15.4% compared to 2022[29] - Revenue for the year ended December 31, 2023 was$ 388.1 million, a decrease from $459.1 million in 2022 and$ 645.3 million in 2021[411] - Net loss for 2023 was $56.6 million, compared to a net loss of$ 72.4 million in 2022 and $8.5 million in 2021[419] - Total assets decreased to$ 153.9 million in 2023 from $170.1 million in 2022[417] - Total liabilities decreased to$ 248.4 million in 2023 from $256.2 million in 2022[417] - Stockholders' deficit increased to$ 94.4 million in 2023 from $86.1 million in 2022[417] - Cost of revenue decreased to$ 321.4 million in 2023 from $389.0 million in 2022 and$ 543.8 million in 2021[419] - Sales and marketing expenses decreased to $25.4 million in 2023 from$ 28.8 million in 2022[419] - Product development expenses decreased to $18.5 million in 2023 from$ 21.1 million in 2022[419] - General and administrative expenses increased to $62.7 million in 2023 from$ 55.6 million in 2022[419] - Interest expense increased to $15.3 million in 2023 from$ 9.2 million in 2022[419] - Net loss for 2023 was $56.6 million, compared to$ 72.4 million in 2022 and $8.5 million in 2021[425] - Equity-based compensation expense for 2023 was$ 53.3 million, slightly down from $58.5 million in 2022[425] - Cash and cash equivalents decreased to$ 17.3 million at the end of 2023 from $50.6 million at the end of 2021[425] - Operating cash flow was$ 20.2 million in 2023, down from $28.6 million in 2021[425] - The company paid$ 13.8 million in interest during 2023, up from $5.6 million in 2021[425] - Consolidated EBITDA increased year-over-year despite reductions in carrier spending, driven by cost reduction efforts, including workforce reductions in Q2 2023[498] - Revenue for 2023 was$ 388.1 million, a decrease from $459.1 million in 2022 and$ 645.3 million in 2021, with Open Marketplace transactions contributing $378.7 million in 2023[505] - Property & casualty insurance revenue declined to$ 164.2 million in 2023 from $224.4 million in 2022, while health insurance revenue remained stable at$ 186.3 million[506] - Pro forma total revenues for the combined company were $465.34 million for 2022 and$ 675.49 million for 2021[515] - Pro forma pretax income (loss) for the combined company was $32.08 million for 2022 and ($ 7.34 million) for 2021[515] Transaction Value and Consumer Referrals - Transaction Value for 2023 was $593.4 million, a decrease of 19.5% compared to 2022[29] - An average of 36.9 million consumers shopped for insurance products through the platform each month in 2023, resulting in 8.2 million Consumer Referrals monthly[26] - High-intent consumers shopped for insurance products over 400 million times in 2023, resulting in approximately 99 million Consumer Referrals[41] - The company transacted nearly 99 million Consumer Referrals in 2023, providing valuable conversion insights for optimizing consumer routing[70] - High-intent consumers shopped for insurance products over 400 million times in 2023, resulting in approximately 99 million Consumer Referrals[62] Platform and Technology - The platform leverages predictive analytics algorithms incorporating hundreds of variables to generate conversion probabilities for each consumer[50] - The platform is designed to be scalable and vertical agnostic, enabling rapid innovation and growth across sectors[51] - The company's platform integrates proprietary user data to enhance targeting, bidding granularity, and conversion tracking, improving customer acquisition and LTV predictions[53] - The company's platform uses robust data science tools to optimize customer acquisition, leveraging unique search and conversion datasets to refine predictive analytics algorithms[54] - The company's platform is vertical-agnostic, enabling quick expansion into new markets with minimal headcount increases[71] Insurance Partners and Market Presence - 15 of the top 20 largest auto insurance carriers by customer acquisition spend were demand partners on the platform in 2023, with 53% also being supply partners[26] - The platform served over 920 insurance partners in 2023, down from over 950 in 2022[40] - 15 of the top 20 largest auto insurance carriers by customer acquisition spend are demand partners on the company's platform[68] - The company's P&C insurance vertical experiences seasonal weakness in Q4 due to lower customer acquisition budgets and Consumer Referral supply during the holiday period[77] - Health insurance vertical experiences seasonal strength in Q4 due to increased consumer referrals and customer acquisition budgets, with Medicare enrollment from October 15 to December 7 and under-65 open enrollment from November 1 to January 31[78] - Customer acquisition spending in health insurance vertical is lower in other quarters, leading to higher accounts receivable at fiscal year-end, typically collected in the subsequent Q1[78] - The company expects P&C insurance industry profitability to improve in 2024, driving increases in advertising spend as carriers focus on acquiring new customers[498] Regulatory and Legal Compliance - Company is subject to various U.S. federal, state, and foreign laws and regulations, including those related to internet, privacy, data protection, and marketing, which may require modifications to data processing practices and incur substantial costs[79][80] - Company became a licensed health insurance broker in all 50 U.S. states and D.C. in 2021, subjecting it to additional laws and regulations, including those related to the Affordable Care Act and Medicare marketing[81] Employee and Workforce - As of December 31, 2023, the company had 137 full-time employees, with a focus on talent acquisition, retention, engagement, development, diversity, inclusion, and pay equity[84] - The company employed an average of 142 individuals in 2023, generating$ 593.4 million in Transaction Value ( $4.2 million per employee) and$ 27.1 million in Adjusted EBITDA ( $0.2 million per employee)[64] Credit and Financial Agreements - A hypothetical 1.0% increase or decrease in interest rates on the 2021 Credit Facilities would result in a$ 1.8 million impact on interest expense for the year ended December 31, 2023[391] - The Company's 2021 Credit Facilities had an outstanding principal amount of $176.0 million as of December 31, 2023, with$ 45.0 million remaining available for borrowing under the 2021 Revolving Credit Facility[497] - The Company amended its credit agreement in June 2023 to transition from LIBOR to SOFR as the interest rate benchmark, with no material impact on financial statements[502] - The Company has sufficient cash and access to its 2021 Revolving Credit Facility to meet operating requirements and debt covenants for at least the next twelve months[498] Revenue Recognition and Accounting - Revenue is recognized when the company transfers Consumer Referrals to buyers, with click, call, and lead revenue recognized based on specific criteria[450] - The company maintains an allowance for credit losses of $0.5 million as of December 31, 2023, compared to$ 0.6 million in 2022[452] - The company capitalizes internal-use software development costs, amortized over an estimated useful life of three years[457] - No significant costs were capitalized during 2023 and 2022 for new features, functionality, or cloud computing arrangement implementation[457] - The company accounts for business acquisitions under ASC Topic 805, recognizing the fair value of assets and liabilities at the acquisition date, with any excess purchase price recorded as goodwill[458] - The company adopted ASC 842 for leases effective January 1, 2021, applying the new standard to all existing leases without restating prior periods[459] - Right-of-use (ROU) assets and lease liabilities are recognized at the lease commencement date based on the present value of lease payments, with ROU assets included in other assets and lease liabilities in accrued expenses[460] - The company elected not to separate lease and non-lease components, with lease payments consisting of fixed payments and variable costs expensed as incurred[461] - Goodwill is evaluated for impairment annually or when potential impairment indicators exist, with no impairment recorded as of October 1, 2023[465] - Finite-lived intangible assets, including customer relationships and trademarks, are amortized over 2 to 10 years, with no impairments recognized for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022[466] - The company accounts for fair value measurements under ASC 820, classifying financial assets and liabilities into three levels based on observable and unobservable inputs[480] - The company excludes sales taxes from revenue, as per ASC 606-10, and discloses significant amounts if reported on a gross basis[483] - The company accounts for income taxes using the asset and liability method, recognizing deferred tax assets and liabilities based on enacted tax rates and evaluating realizability quarterly[486] Tax Receivable Agreement (TRA) - The company entered into a tax receivables agreement (TRA) requiring it to pay 85% of cash savings from tax benefits to Insignia, Senior Executives, and White Mountains[434][435] - The company made payments of $2.8 million and$ 0.2 million under the Tax Receivable Agreement (TRA) for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively[478] - The Company's TRA liability is contingent on future taxable income and tax laws, with payments classified as current if expected within the next 12 months[490][492] Non-Controlling Interest and Equity - MediaAlpha, Inc. consolidates the financial results of QLH and its subsidiaries, reporting a non-controlling interest related to the portion of Class B-1 Units not owned by MediaAlpha, Inc., which reduces net income attributable to holders of Class A common stock[437] - The Company's non-controlling interest is primarily held by Insignia and Senior Executives, with changes in ownership interest accounted for as equity transactions[493] - As of December 31, 2023, the company reserved 18,070,829 shares of Class A common stock for potential future exchange of Class B-1 units[433] - Total stockholders' equity deficit increased to $94.4 million at the end of 2023 from$ 105.1 million at the end of 2020[422] - Class A common stock units increased to 47.4 million at the end of 2023 from 33.4 million at the end of 2020[422] - Accumulated deficit grew to $522.6 million at the end of 2023 from$ 418.9 million at the end of 2020[422] Customer and Supplier Concentration - In 2023, one customer accounted for 14% of accounts receivable, totaling $7 million, compared to no customers exceeding 10% in 2022[395] - In 2023, one supplier accounted for 13% of purchases, totaling$ 41 million, and 21% of accounts payable, totaling $12 million[395] - In 2023, one customer accounted for 14% of accounts receivable, totaling$ 7 million, while in 2022, one customer accounted for 10% of revenue, totaling $48 million[455] - Supplier concentration in 2023 included one supplier accounting for 13% of purchases ($ 41 million) and 21% of accounts payable ( $12 million)[455] Acquisitions and Goodwill - The Company acquired CHT for$ 56.7 million in April 2022, with $49.7 million in cash consideration and$ 7.0 million in contingent consideration, which is not expected to be paid due to unmet targets[508][509] - The goodwill resulting from the acquisition is tax deductible, with $22.7 million deductible for tax purposes as of the closing date[512] - The fair value of acquired intangible assets is$ 26.12 million, including $18.46 million for customer relationships and$ 7.66 million for trademarks, trade names, and domain names[513] - The weighted average life of intangible assets as of the acquisition date is 7.9 years[514] Internal Controls and Audits - Company's internal control over financial reporting was effective as of December 31, 2023, as per management's evaluation and audit by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP[399] IPO and Stock Information - The company completed its IPO on October 30, 2020, selling 7,027,606 shares of Class A Common Stock at $19.00 per share, raising$ 124.2 million net[430]