E.W. Scripps Co. (SSP) Reports In-Line Q4 EPS, Revenues Beat

E.W. Scripps Co. (NASDAQ: SSP) reported Q4 EPS of $0.13, in-line with the analyst estimate of $0.13. Revenue for the quarter came in at $444 million versus the consensus estimate of $422.86 million.

Business highlights

• Scripps has delivered financial results that have met or exceeded expectations for the last nine consecutive quarters.
• In 2019, Scripps completed strategic television station acquisitions that position it as the fourth-largest independent local broadcaster, with 60 stations in 42 markets reaching 31% of U.S. TV households and bolstering the company\'s economic durability.
• During the first half of 2020, Scripps will renegotiate retransmission consent contracts covering about 40% of its subscriber households. In addition, on Dec. 31, 2019, the company\'s agreement with Comcast reset, covering 5.5 million households.
• Local Media division core advertising revenue, on an adjusted combined basis, rose nearly 5% in the fourth quarter over Q4 2018. Political advertising of $15 million exceeded our expectations due to strong spending on Kentucky, Louisiana and Virginia state races as well as early 2020 Senate and presidential election spending.
• National Media division revenue neared the $400 million threshold for 2019 as it builds to well over $500 million in revenue in 2021. All four key national businesses made strong contributions to full-year growth: the Katz networks, with a 22% year-over-year revenue increase; Stitcher, with a 42% increase; Newsy; with a 75% increase; and Triton, the digital audio software-as-a-service business, rose 16% on an apples to apples basis as if we had owned it for all of fourth-quarter 2018.

Commenting on recent business highlights, Scripps President and CEO Adam Symson said:

"The E.W. Scripps Company has positioned itself exceedingly well to thrive in the media landscape by working a plan dedicated to executing for near-term operating results and long-term value creation. As we turn the page on 2019, we are the fourth-largest independent broadcaster, reaching one in three U.S. television households with a stronger and better-performing portfolio of local television stations. We have the reach and the depth we sought out as a part of our consolidation strategy.

"Last quarter, our national businesses blew past the $100 million milestone in quarterly revenue through strong contributions from Katz, Newsy, Stitcher and Triton. Each of these four businesses is a leader in a fast-growing marketplace and is contributing to expanding division margins and creating new shareholder value by capitalizing on consumers' changing media behaviors.

"As a result of that repositioning, Scripps will take advantage of the opportunity we see in 2020. Our expanded political advertising footprint sets us up now to even better capture political advertising dollars during what has already proven to be a robustly contested presidential election year. The M&A work of the last year grew the company's scale just ahead of the reset our Comcast retransmission fees and the renegotiating of another 40% of our cable and satellite subscriber base this spring. We expect our National Media division to run ahead of our previous revenue targets of $500 million in 2021.

"We remain committed to a balanced approach to allocating capital through acquisitions and dividends, and we now have a new share repurchase authorization in place. Looking ahead, we are focused on high cash flow this year as we benefit from the creation of a more durable and better-performing company."

For earnings history and earnings-related data on E.W. Scripps Co. (SSP) click here.

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