Scripps 1Q Station Revenue Drop 4.5%

E.W. Scripps Co. announced third quarter results this morning, including Local Media (its TV stations and local brands on all platforms) revenue of $312 million, down 4.5% from the prior-year quarter.

Core advertising decreased 10% to $141 million.

Political advertising revenue was $3.5 million, compared to $5.8 million in the prior-year quarter.

Distribution revenue increased 2.4% to $163 million.

Segment expenses increased 2.3%, reflecting lower rating services costs.

Segment profit was $45.8 million, compared to $54.4 million in the year-ago quarter.

The Scripps Networks division, which includes its nine national networks, reported revenue of $216 million, down 9.5% from the prior-year quarter, reflecting continued weakness in the national advertising marketplace.

Segment expenses were $165 million, up 7.1% from the prior-year quarter, attributed to higher distribution fees.

Segment profit was $51.5 million, compared to $85.1 million in the year-ago quarter.

For the company as a whole, total 1Q revenue was $528 million, a decrease of 6.7%, or $37.9 million, from the prior-year quarter.

Costs and expenses for segments, shared services and corporate were $455 million, up from $451 million in the year-ago quarter.

Loss attributable to the shareholders of Scripps was $31.1 million or 37 cents per share.

Commenting on the quarter’s results, Scripps President-CEO Adam Symson said: “In the short time since we launched Scripps Sports, we are very pleased to have already announced two significant deals – the creation of the WNBA Friday Night Spotlight on ION and an exclusive local distribution partnership with the National Hockey League’s Vegas Golden Knights. We are thrilled to be working with the WNBA, whose popularity is growing exponentially. Last season, WNBA viewership was up 22%, and this new distribution on ION will give the league even greater reach while allowing fans to find the games with the consistency of a franchise event, every Friday night through the season.

“We’re also very pleased to have signed the Golden Knights as our first local partner. Scripps Sports and our Las Vegas stations will be the exclusive local TV distribution for the popular and successful NHL team. The agreement allows Scripps to televise Golden Knights games with full distribution on cable, satellite and over-the-air TV from our station KMCC, while our ABC affiliate, KTNV, will provide a strong marketing platform to support the telecasts. Live sports is the most valuable content genre in linear television, and we established Scripps Sports to work with leagues and teams to leverage the power of our platform for mutual financial benefit. We are taking a disciplined approach to the marketplace and look forward to more partnerships ahead.

“Launching Scripps Sports was one important component of the reorganization we began at the start of the year. The reorganization is aimed at positioning the company to capture opportunities in the industry growth areas of news, sports and entertainment; TV distribution platforms including over the air and connected TV; and datacasting and other businesses enabled by ATSC 3.0. We also expect to realize savings of at least $40 million through centralization of some services and the consolidation of layers of management.

“Like sports, news is central to the value of live linear television. Centralizing all national news resources and establishing Scripps News has created a powerful news operation that informs and engages audiences through our over-the-air and connected TV network while feeding our local newsrooms journalism our audiences can trust. The result has been greater efficiency and high-impact journalism.

“Despite the ongoing macroeconomic challenges, Scripps had several bright spots in our first-quarter financial results. First, as we renew the majority of our pay TV subscriber households this year, we saw a 1 percent sequential increase in subscriber households in our most recent reporting period. Second, we continue to maintain strong partnerships with both legacy and virtual pay TV services as they recognize the value created for them by local stations. Third, we also are benefitting from the rise in connected TV viewing now that our Scripps Networks are carried by all the major players. Being distributed on cable, satellite, virtual MVPDs, CTV and over the air is Scripps’ all-of-the-above strategy to create enterprise value on every viewing platform.”

Read the company’s report here.