Scripps 2Q Station Revenue Drops 1%

E.W. Scripps Co. announced second quarter results this morning, including Local Media (its TV stations and local brands on all platforms) revenue of $352 million, down 1% from the prior-year quarter.

Core advertising decreased 5.2% to $149 million.

Political advertising revenue was $3.8 million, compared to $24 million in the prior-year quarter, an election year.

Distribution revenue increased 14% to $195 million.

Segment expenses decreased 1.4%, reflecting lower rating services costs and advertising and promotion ependitures..

Segment profit was $81 million, compared to $80.7 million in the year-ago quarter.

The Scripps Networks division, which includes its nine national networks, reported revenue of $231 million, down 3.2% from the prior-year quarter, reflecting continued weakness in the national advertising marketplace.

Segment expenses were $171 million, up 3.2% from the prior-year quarter.

Segment profit was $60.3 million, compared to $73.3 million in the year-ago quarter.

For the company as a whole, total 2Q revenue was $383 million, a decrease of 2%, or $11.6 million, from the prior-year quarter.

Costs and expenses for segments, shared services and corporate were $471 million, up from $463 million in the year-ago quarter.

Loss attributable to the shareholders of Scripps was $682 million or $8.10 per share.

Commenting on the quarter’s results, Scripps President-CEO Adam Symson said: “In our Local Media segment, we are pleased to be making good progress on our distribution renewals, netting Scripps significant increases to market rate and leading to mid-teens distribution revenue growth this year as well as significant net distribution margin expansion. In local advertising, the most positive story was the return of automotive spending – our second-largest core advertising category. Automotive has now shown year over year growth for four consecutive quarters.

“At Scripps Networks, scatter market demand and audience ratings were better than we had anticipated for the second quarter, and we look forward to the rebound of our portfolio revenue upon the return of the national advertising marketplace.

“Our Scripps Sports division came to life in the second quarter with the launch of the WNBA on Ion. We are very pleased to be attracting a large number of fans to this Friday night franchise, and recent games have surpassed WNBA ratings on other networks, including ESPN. We also are garnering premium advertising rates above our traditional Ion programming lineup. Through free, paid and connected TV, we are thrilled to be bringing the excitement of women’s professional basketball to a much greater number of Americans each week. Women’s sports is at the earliest stages of its rightful recognition in the marketplace, and we’re pleased to play an important role in its growth in value.

“We’re also looking ahead to the start of our exclusive local distribution partnership with the Vegas Golden Knights, kicking off on Sept. 24. The Stanley Cup champions have an avid fan base and are beloved across the western U.S. We will be broadcasting their games in nine Scripps television markets, and local, regional and national advertising demand is strong.

“Scripps Sports and Scripps News are both important components to the reorganization we began at the start of the year. The reorganization is 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 our large spectrum footprint. We continue to expect to realize savings of at least $40 million through centralization and consolidation of layers of management as well as advances in newsroom technology and organizational structure that also allow us to put more reporters into the community and deepen our local coverage.”

Read the company’s report here.