Scripps Revenue Rises In Fourth Quarter

Up In Q4

Fourth quarter 2018 revenue for THE E.W. SCRIPPS CO. increased 41% to $368 million, including $3.3 million attributed to TRITON DIGITAL, which was acquired on NOVEMBER 30th.  The company closed on the sales of its radio stations for $83.5 million during the quarter as well.  Income from continuing operations more than tripled from $11.5 million to $36 million (16 to 44 cents/share), with 2018's number including a write-off of $8.9 million for SCRIPPS' investment in the syndicated "PICKLER AND BEN" TV show and $3.8 million in costs due to the acquisition of TRITON and the pending purchase of 15 TV stations from CORDILLERA COMMUNICATIONS.

Local media revenue jumped 39% to $281 million, with increases for political ad sales and retransmission fees offsetting an 8.4% decline in core advertising (blamed in part on displacement by political ads).  National media revenue, including the STITCHER podcast network and TRITON, saw a big jump from $57.9 million to $85.5 million, with segment profit up from $2.7 million to $7 million.

President/CEO ADAM SYMSON said, "Last year, the company made tremendous strides in its plan to improve short-term operating performance while positioning itself strategically for long-term growth. In terms of our five-point growth plan, we completed the reorganization of our company into consumer-focused Local and National Media divisions, reduced our corporate and division costs by more than $30 million, sold our 34 radio stations, and beat our financial results guidance across the board each quarter.

"We announced plans to acquire 18 television stations from CORDILLERA and RAYCOM, enhancing our durability and depth in key states and growing our reach to 21 percent of the United States. Upon the closing of the CORDILLERA transaction, we will own No.1 stations in a third of our local media markets.

"We maintained a balanced approach to allocating capital through the television station acquisitions and the addition of digital audio leader TRITON to our portfolio of fast-growing National Media businesses combined with the initiation of a dividend and our accelerated share repurchase program.

"Looking ahead, we are focused on continuing to seek opportunities to bolster the durability and reach of our portfolio. SCRIPPS also continues to grow its retransmission revenue and will benefit in less than a year from the reset of its COMCAST contract on DECEMBER 31, 2019.

"We will continue to scale our national businesses by focusing on audience and revenue growth to drive greater future cash-flow contributions.

"Our management prioritizes near-term operating performance while maintaining our approach to long-term value creation. These were the goals of our plan, and we are pleased with our progress in executing it."

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