E.W. Scripps (NASDAQ:SSP) Posts Q3 Sales In Line With Estimates

• Revenue: $525.9 cardinal vs expert estimates of $523.9 cardinal (18.6% year-on-year decline, successful line)

• EPS (GAAP): -$0.55 vs expert expectations of -$0.32 (70.8% miss)

• Adjusted EBITDA: $80.43 cardinal vs expert estimates of $68.75 cardinal (15.3% margin, 17% beat)

• Operating Margin: 7.2%, down from 18.8% successful the aforesaid 4th past year

• Free Cash Flow was -$15.07 million, down from $127.4 cardinal successful the aforesaid 4th past year

• Market Capitalization: $185.1 million

Local Media part halfway advertizing gross was up 2% successful the 3rd quarter, driven by the services class and wide maturation successful nationalist advertizing owed to beardown income execution and Scripps’ sports strategy. During the 4th quarter, the institution expects beardown halfway gross growth, buoyed by its caller statement with the National Hockey League’s Tampa Bay Lightning, continued maturation crossed unrecorded sports markets and the examination to past year’s governmental advertizing displacement of halfway advertising. The Scripps Networks part continues to capitalize connected the networks’ wide organisation connected streaming platforms to turn connected TV revenue, up 41% successful the 4th and helping to offset softness owed to economical uncertainty. Networks gross came successful amended than peers astatine astir level for Q3 and, combined with a 7% simplification successful expenses, the part delivered a 27% margin. The WNBA play connected ION wrapped successfully, with linear and connected TV gross increasing 92% implicit the 2024 play contempt Caitlin Clark’s lack owed to injury. Demand for the WNBA and different women’s sports connected ION successful this year’s upfront rhythm was strong, with sports measurement up 30% and commanding premium advertisement rates. Scripps precocious announced the merchantability of 2 network-affiliated stations: WFTX successful Fort Myers, Florida, to Sun Broadcasting, and WRTV successful Indianapolis to Circle City Broadcasting, with full proceeds of $123 million. These transactions travel plans announced successful July to swap stations crossed 5 markets successful 4 states with Gray Media. This optimization of the Scripps portfolio supports the company’s strategy to amended the operating show of its section stations and wage down debt. On Aug. 6, Scripps closed connected the placement of $750 cardinal successful caller elder secured second-lien notes astatine a complaint of 9.875%. Proceeds were utilized to wage disconnected the company’s 2027 elder notes; wage down $205 cardinal of its 2028 word indebtedness B-2; and wage disconnected a information of its revolving recognition facilities. The institution has since paid disconnected the remaining equilibrium connected its revolving recognition facilities. Net leverage astatine the extremity of the 3rd 4th was 4.6x, down from 4.9x astatine the extremity of the archetypal 4th and successful enactment with the company’s projected year-end leverage. Scripps’ section tv stations led an employee- and on-air run to rise wealth for the Scripps Howard Fund’s ninth yearly “If You Give a Child a Book …” campaign, and proceeds volition let the Fund to put a record-breaking $1.8 cardinal during the 2025-2026 world twelvemonth to supply much than 300,000 books to children astatine low-income schools crossed the United States.