Nexstar is the largest television station owner in the US with 197 stations in 115 markets. Its stations are affiliated with well-known national broadcasters like CBS, Fox, NBC, and ABC. Nexstar also owns WGN and has a 31% stake in Food Network and Cooking Channel. The company’s scale allows it to attract national advertising campaigns. The company also earns retransmission fees which have been trending up. These fees include the fee that digital platforms pay to transmit Nexstar’s programs.
Best Broadcasting TV Stocks Right Now
There are plenty of broadcasting stocks that an investor can look at. There is Nexstar Media Group, Gray Television, Sinclair Broadcast Group, and Tegna. Gray Television is based in Atlanta and operates 145 stations across the US. Sinclair Broadcast Group is the second-largest television station operator in the US after Nexstar. it operates 193 stations covering 40% of American households. Tegna is a broadcast company headquartered in Virginia. It operates 66 television stations across 54 markets in the US.
Stock Performances
Nexstar Media Group’s stock has risen 90% since the March market fall. On a 5-year basis, the stock is up 66%. Gray Television’s stock, meanwhile, is up 49% since the March market crash. On a 5-year basis, the stock is down 12%. Sinclair Broadcast’s stock is up 45% since hitting a low in March. On a 5-year basis, the stock is down 37%. Tegna’s stock is down 3% since March and down 27% on a 5-year basis. So, clearly, Nexstar Media is the better performer on a short-term and long-term basis. It is one of the top media stocks to buy right now.
Nexstar Media also pays a decent dividend. The stock closed at $88 on 16th October and traded at a 2.54% dividend yield. While the pandemic caused a significant drop in advertising revenues for the short term, the upcoming US elections are boosting those ad spends.
