Sinclair, Inc. Stock Price: Quote, Forecast, Splits & News (SBGI)

Perplexity Finance

SBGI

Sinclair, Inc.

SBGI

Overview

Financials

Historical Data

$13.00

-$0.16

1.22%

At close: Jun 13, 4:00:00 PM EDT

$13.01

+$0.01

0.08%

After hours: 4:17:11 AM EDT

Financial information provided by Financial Modeling Prep. Options data provided by Unusual Whales. Live transcripts provided by Quartr. Reported revenue and EPS data from Earnings powered by FinChat.io. All data is provided for informational purposes only, and is not intended for trading purposes or financial, investment, tax, legal, accounting or other advice.

Market Cap: $904M
IPO Date: 6/7/95
CEO: Mr. Christopher S. Ripley
Fulltime Employees: 7.2K
Sector: Communication Services
Industry: Entertainment
Country: US
Exchange: NASDAQ Global Select

Peers

$0.00

Watchlist

$0.00

Sinclair, Inc. Stock Price: Quote, Forecast, Splits & News (SBGI)

Change

-$0.16

1.22%

Financial Profile

Prev Close

$13.16

Market Cap

$904.43M

Day Range

$12.90 - $13.31

Open

$13.01

P/E Ratio

6.4

52W Range

$11.13 - $18.45

24H Volume

$5.78M

Dividend Yield

7.69%

EPS

2.04

Key Issues

Earnings

Report Date

May 7, 2025

Reported Revenue

776M

Beat +0.01%

Avg 1d Change

3.59%

Report Period

Q1 2025

Reported EPS

-2.2

Miss -22.47%

Implied Move 1d

9.21%

Transcript

11m 54s

Actual results in the future could differ from those described in the forward looking statements as a result of various important factors. Such factors have been set forth in the company's most recent reports as filed with the SEC and included in our first quarter earnings release. The company undertakes no obligation to update these forward looking statements. Included on the call will be discussion of non GAAP financial measures, specifically adjusted EBITDA. These measures are not formulated in accordance with GAAP, are not meant to replace GAAP measurements and may differ from other companies' uses or formulations. Further discussions and reconciliations of the company's non GAAP financial measures to comparable GAAP financial measures can be found on our website. Let me now turn the call over to Chris Ripley.

12m 37s

Good afternoon, everyone, and thank you for joining us.

12m 41s

Beginning on Slide three, we're off to a solid start to the year despite the macroeconomic uncertainty all around us.

12m 48s

Our total media revenue was in line with our expectations. Once again, we reported what we believe will be among the strongest core advertising performances among our broadcast peers in the first quarter. Total advertising revenues were within our guidance range, excluding the impact in the quarter from an acquisition by Compulse. Distribution revenues increased by $15,000,000 year over year and while subscriber churn moderated slightly, the improvements have not yet caught up with our guide which led to distribution revenues coming in $2,000,000 below our guidance. Media expenses were better than expected, driving adjusted EBITDA comfortably above the high end of our guidance range. Turning to Slide four, Our ventures portfolio continues to transform from our minority investment holdings as we look to position the portfolio for more majority owned assets over time. Ventures benefited from $10,000,000 of cash distributions and invested $38,000,000 in the quarter, including approximately 30,000,000 for an acquisition by Compulse. Venture's cash balance was $354,000,000 at quarter end. After completing our comprehensive refinancing of SCG in February, we continue to carefully examine potential uses of Ventur's cash which may include potential share repurchases or other shareholder friendly activity. On Slide five, wanted to highlight a key announcement we made last week regarding the hire of Jeff Blackburn, as Chairman and CEO of Tennis Channel.

14m 18s

Jeff comes to us after a storied twenty plus year career at Amazon where he was the prime architect of the company's expansion into streaming and sports, while also developing and building Prime Video, Prime Studios Amazon Music, Amazon's advertising and marketplace divisions. He will lead Tennis Channel strategy to expand its digital and streaming footprint and deepen audience engagement in order to position Tennis Channel for its next phase of transformative growth and long term value creation. As the latest example of such growth, just this morning we announced the formation of a new business unit to operate a groundbreaking partnership with the ATP, WTA and participating U. S. Tournaments to create a unified opportunity to purchase a single comprehensive sponsorship package that covers the entire country. This morning Verizon was announced as the first sponsor sale with category exclusivity in the five gs wireless space. We are excited to have attracted a media executive of Jeff Snatcher and we view the tennis Enterprise sponsorship announcement as an example of the growth and long term value creation that we're committed to delivering in the quarters and years to come. With that said, let me now turn it over to Rob to continue the discussion about our broadcast business.

15m 36s

Chris, and good afternoon, everyone.

15m 38s

Turning to Slide six. As Chris mentioned earlier, we expect our core average dot advertising results to once again be a leader in the industry. Despite the uncertainty and volatility that is impacting major categories across the nation. This would continue recent trends, which have seen us beating our publicly traded broadcast in years in year over year core growth rates in four of the past six quarters. Through the end of twenty twenty four. During the first quarter, core advertising revenues were within our guidance [indiscernible] of down low single digits year over year. Having said that, the macroeconomic and tariff related uncertainty is creating hesitation by certain top categories. On a positive note, we are now less than eight months away from another political season kicking off. On slide seven, as an early preview on what we expect in 2026, we currently have 23 25 gubernatorial races. In our footprint. We believe that at least six of these Senate races will be highly competitive and more than half the 30 house races have already been targeted by the National Republican and Democratic parties as potential flips. We expect intense battles across the country as the House, Senate, and gubernatorial elections are all closed to being evenly split between the two parties.

17m 10s

And so we expect taking control will be a driver of midterm election dollars. Touching our distribution revenues on Slide eight. Our net retransmission revenues grew by mid single digits year over year in the quarter. And we continue to expect a two year mid single digit CAGR through the end of this year. Notably, Charter, our largest MVPD, reduced video subscriber discounts in the first quarter by 55% year over year. Highlighting their success in reducing churn, including what we have called the great rebundling. The package is streaming platforms with legacy linear packages. We believe Charter's success in reducing churn illustrates how creative solutions, including this type of bundling, of the streaming platform platforms with legacy Linea packages can reduce or reverse subscriber churn materially over time. From a renewal perspective, during the quarter, we expended our YouTube TV distribution agreement. As a reminder, we do not have any outstanding traditional linear [indiscernible] or big four network affiliation agreements up for renewal before late twenty twenty six. I also want to point out that our Portland Trailblazes coverage in this past NBA regular season doubled its average audience size on our stations in the Pacific Northwest versus the prior season's coverage on a regional sports network.

18m 41s

Once again highlighting the importance of live sports and the benefits of the wide distribution of broadcast TV. The latest addition to our AMP Media sports podcast lineup, VFFR, starring women's soccer stars, Sydney Larue and Allie Reilly, two of the key members of Angel City Football Club, launched last week. The weekly podcast will focus on the authentic behind the scenes discussions that have helped them grow their social media identities into some of the largest in women's sports media landscape. We will also launch a women's basketball podcast shortly featuring WNBA stars Candice Parker and Aaliyah Boston.

19m 23s

These launches reflect our continued commitment to elevating women's sports, and amplifying their voice of its top athlete. Stay tuned for additional announcements regarding the ongoing expansion of our social media and podcast platforms. I also wanted to briefly mention our very successful upfront presentation last week in New York, where we showcased our news and sports brands and demonstrated how advertisers can activate and amplify their brands as our partner. I wanted to thank all our podcast talent, including coach Urban Meyer, Mark Ingram II, Rob Stone, Martina Narmatalova, Sidney Larue, Landon Donovan, Matt Leinart, and Jerry Ferrara. For being at our upfront and helping us demonstrate what a powerful partner we can be for our advertisers. Look forward to sharing updates with you in coming quarters. Now let me turn it back over to Chris to provide a couple of the industry updates.

20m 22s

Thanks, Rob. Turning to Slide nine. We, along with the NAB and the entire industry, are hopeful that the many of the the woefully outdated FCC regulations that have hampered growth in the broadcast industry over the recent decades will be revisited if not eliminated in the coming months. And we remain hopeful that most of the outdated ownership rules impacting the sector will be modified to allow sensible M and A and portfolio rationalization. In addition, the industry will be lobbying for other issues impacting the sector, particularly the rules that prohibit broadcasters from negotiating directly with virtual MVPDs as well as the rules that will allow the industry to rapidly sunset ATSC one point zero network will help accelerate wide adoption of next gen broadcast products and services. As an example of what may come, last week, FCC Commissioner Simonton and his Chief of Staff authored an op ed suggesting that the FCC should take action to cap network programming fees at 30% of retransmission fees. The piece highlights this proposal as a way to protect local broadcasters and local journalism from big tech and big media. Implementation of such a proposal would allow for the strengthening of local and local news throughout the country.

21m 38s

We look forward to continuing to work with Chairman Carr and the rest of the SEC on a very welcomed and long overdue deregulatory approach to provide to the broadcast industry, to help level the playing field. Lastly, I wanted to extend my deep appreciation and best wishes to Lucy. Who announced her upcoming retirement several weeks ago. While Lucy is staying on through the transition of the new CFO, her over twenty six years at Sinclair will be coming to an end within the next several months. Lucy has more than eight years of experience in the CFO chair and her reputation and expertise has benefited Sinclair greatly over the years. Lucy recently led our almost $4,000,000,000 comprehensive refinancing and has helped guide the company through tremendous growth of our portfolio of stations, diversification of our assets many capital markets transactions and many other initiatives, as well as the Great Recession, the pandemic and other challenges. Her numerous awards and recognitions from across the industry are testimony to her leadership dedication and knowledge of both Sinclair and the wider broadcast industry. Even though we expect her to remain with us in a senior advisory role, there is no question that we will greatly miss her guidance strategic and fiscal contributions, mentorship and work ethic.

22m 59s

On behalf of the company, thank you for everything, Lucy. Now perhaps for the final time, let me turn it over to Lucy for a discussion on our financial results in more detail. Lucy?

23m 11s

Thank you, Chris, for the very kind words, and good afternoon, everyone. I'm pleased to say that I depart with Sinclair in a financially strong and healthy position.

23m 23s

Employees to grow in what should be a transformative next few years with deregulation and next gen broadcast. Turning to slide 10, following our recent refinancing, we have significantly extended the debt maturity profile of the company with a current weighted average maturity of more than six years. As of March 31, our first out first lien net leverage was 1.8x, with total first lien net leverage at 4.2 times and total net leverage at 5.8x as defined in our new STG credit agreement. Our balance sheet is now not only the industry's longest in terms of maturity profile, but more importantly positions us well to participate in what we hope will be a period of renewed M and A activity within the sector. In addition to the comprehensive refinancing, we also repurchased approximately $66,000,000 in face value of STG's 2027 notes for $62,000,000 in early April. On Slide 11, we highlight our first quarter segment results. Despite the negative economic headlines and general levels of uncertainty throughout the economy, we delivered in line media revenues in our Local Media segment with core advertising down 4.5% year over year, and distribution revenues that were slightly below expectations although they grew year over year.

25m 5s

Our political revenue outperformance in the quarter was largely driven by a Wisconsin Supreme Court race that garnered national attention in what could be an early indicator of what's to come in next year's midterm elections. Adjusted EBITDA beat the high end of our guidance range by approximately $9,000,000 for Local Media, driven by favorable SG and A and promotional expenses on a continued cost savings focus. Tennis Channel had another strong quarter with revenues and adjusted EBITDA both in line with our guidance ranges as total revenues grew by 9% from year ago levels. Slide 12 reviews our consolidated media revenue, which was within our guidance range as in line core and higher political advertising were offset by slightly lower than expected distribution revenues. Media revenues fell by approximately $22,000,000 year over year, driven by lower political advertising revenues in this nonelection year. And the absence of material Diamond Sports management fees which were offset by higher distribution of $15,000,000 year over year on the recent renewals. Turning to Slide 13.

26m 28s

Our consolidated adjusted EBITDA exceeded our guidance range primarily on a continued focus on managing expenses which were lower than forecast due to several SG and A line items. As compared to last year, adjusted EBITDA declined by 27,000,000 driven by lower core political and management fee revenues and slightly higher media expenses on network programming fees, production costs and annual compensation increases. On Slide 14, we introduced our second quarter twenty twenty five Please note that our guidance includes the recent acquisition by Compulse, which is included in Other our segment reporting. We expect second quarter Media revenues to be lower year over year on a consolidated basis due primarily to significantly lower political revenues in a non election year the absence of material diamond management fees, as well as some continued softness in core advertising categories. We anticipate Local Media core advertising advertising revenue to be lower by approximately 2% at the midpoint of our guidance range, while distribution revenues are expected to be 1% higher year over year as we begin to cycle through some of the larger distribution renewals from a year ago. Our consolidated adjusted EBITDA is expected to be within a range of 91,000,000 to 107,000,000 Turning to Slide 15, we present our full year guide guidance.

28m 10s

However, we have removed the media expense line item. We believe the current macroeconomic and tariff related uncertainty is causing our advertisers in several key categories to have significantly reduced visibility and is therefore driving a wide range of potential outcomes in the second half of the year. In fact, several of those advertisers have pulled their own financial With the reduced visibility on core revenues in the back half of the year, it's difficult to provide a range for the media expenses given the direct costs associated with those revenues such as commissions, bonuses, etcetera. However, you do have Q1 actuals and Q2 guidance to inform your full year media expense estimates based on your advertising revenue assumptions in the back half of the year. We will note that consistent with our beat on media expenses, in the first quarter, we would expect those expense trends pre acquisition to continue under an assumption of of consistent revenue expectations for the remainder of the year. In the full year guidance provided, net interest expense includes the nonrecurring $68,000,000 in fees and expenses related to the refinancing that were expensed in the first quarter. Notably, for the year, are now forecasting much lower cash tax payments of $121,000,000 at the midpoint of our guidance which is $95,000,000 lower than our guidance provided last quarter.

29m 53s

Driving the reduction is a revised estimate of the tax taxes on the Diamond exit gain which declined from an estimated 170,000,000 to 83,000,000 The $87,000,000 estimated reduction is largely due to having more current information regarding the utilization of certain tax attributes. Of the $83,000,000 Diamond exit gain taxes, local media is estimated to fund 58,000,000 and ventures to fund 25,000,000 I will now turn it back to Chris for some closing remarks before we open the call to Q and A. Thanks, Lucy. Turning to Slide 16 to wrap up the quarter with our key takeaways. Sinclair delivered solid financial results in a challenging environment. Adjusted EBITDA exceeded the high end of our range guidance. Core advertising trends continue to be among the best in the industry despite the macroeconomic uncertainties and lack of visibility. Subscriber churn continues to moderate. Regulatory optimism remains buoyant with expectations for loosened M and A restrictions and next gen spectrum relief among other potentially favorable changes that could lead to a strengthening of local journalism. The balance sheet is strong with a comprehensive refinancing completed during the first quarter our weighted average maturity of more than six years out, our nearest matured meaningful maturity not until December of twenty twenty nine and $66,000,000 of debt repurchased at a discount.

31m 26s

Finally, liquidity got a further boost from a significantly lower cash tax payment estimate for the full year related to the Diamond Chapter 11 emergence. In summary, we could not be more optimistic about the future for the industry and Sinclair's continued position as an industry leader. Thank you very much for joining us today. And your interest in Sinclair. Rob, Lucy and I will now take your questions.

32m 1s

We do ask that while posing your question, please pick up your handset if you're listening on speakerphone to provide optimum sound quality. Once again, if you have any questions or comments, please press 1 on your phone. Your first question is coming from Dan Kurnos from Benchmark. Your line is live.

32m 20s

Great, thanks. Good afternoon. Chris, let me just echo sentiments. Lucy, we go back a long, long way.

32m 28s

A certain one handed catch at Brewer Stadium while holding a beverage, I might add, will never be forgotten. So, I do certainly wish you nothing but the best. Just wanted to start with that. I appreciate that.

32m 40s

Thank you, Dan.

32m 43s

Chris, obviously, you know, the the Symington op ed piece has gotten a lot of attention. There's a lot of debate as to whether or not the FCC can cap retrans rates reverse rates, I should be clear. Can you please address that?

32m 58s

And whether or not you think they can do something like that? Although, obviously, if they were even just allow you to negotiate directly with the virtuals that would change the net trajectory pretty significantly.

33m 11s

Sure. So the FCC does have the ability to regulate the relationship between networks and affiliates that is a of their charter. So obviously, capping a major expense like that could be very helpful. In terms of leveling the playing field with us and big tech and big media. And it could also open up bigger opportunities for us in terms of filling in day parts that maybe the networks don't want to to service anymore, which would also dovetail with the FCC's objectives. So like overall, I think what our key takeaway is from that Simonton op ed is that we're seeing this groundswell of deregulatory support for the broadcast industry that we believe is well overdue. And the right answer for the industry, I think, will end up being a combination of things. Some of which will be loosing up ownership rules, sunsetting one point zero, but other ideas that are coming to the surface here. And we're just thrilled that the FCC is stepping in to help level the playing field. Got it. Super helpful. And then kind of the other obvious question given sort of the uncertainties out there, pulled your media expense line item. We got the 2Q guide.

34m 48s

Maybe just tell us what you're seeing out there conversations with advertisers and how do you guys feel about how core might shape up for the year, understanding you have some really easy comps in the back half of the year?

35m

Yes. As we look at as the year goes on, we still expect our core to grow year over year. However, I'll caveat that by saying that our visibility is greatly reduced. Over what it was six to eight weeks ago. We've seen large companies in several of our key advertising categories such as Ford, pull their own financial guidance for the year. Given the uncertainty around what the broader economic and tariff policies are. Those companies are concerned about what the supply chains as well as consumer confidence and demand So while we expect it to grow year over year, I've captured that we're cautiously optimistic with limited visibility as time has gone on.

35m 52s

Got it. Super helpful. Thank you and Lucy, best of luck.

35m 56s

Thank you, Dan.

35m 59s

Thank you. Your next question is coming from Erin Watts from Deutsche Bank. Your line is live.

36m 6s

Everyone. Thanks for having me on. Lucy, want to thank you for everything over the many years, including putting up with all my questions and all conferences you took time to participate in. We'll miss you at those and on these calls, but I am glad that you'll still be with the company in your new role. So best of luck with that.

36m 25s

Appreciate it. Thank you.

36m 27s

Of course.

36m 29s

A follow-up on core advertising. Maybe the auto category specifically, how did that trend in first quarter? And how is it looking in 2Q? Are you seeing any bump on kind of beat the tariff ads, get a car before the price increases? And do you see this bump, if it is happening, as sustainable at all?

36m 53s

Up to this date, we haven't seen that bump. We were just notified, though, that Nissan will be going on an aggressive ad campaign. What's interesting is the trends are moving away from outright buys to leases And so the leases are tending to trend up. So we're bullish on the financial segment wrapped around the automotive And again, they're going to have to clear out the 25s in the back half of the year to make room for the 26s. But again, with some of the visibility not there, how much of the foreign manufacturers, OEMs, how much is going to come into the country, still remains not visible to us.

37m 36s

So I think we're competitive on the domestic side, and the foreign side is still to be seen.

37m 44s

Okay.

37m 46s

And in terms of what you see from some of your bigger markets versus maybe more of your smaller markets, national versus local. Are you seeing a widespread kind of difference in advertiser sentiment based on that? I mean, we've been hearing that nationals a bit weaker than local. Are you seeing that play out?

38m 7s

Both are running parallel with each other. And again, I think we approach the business in a unique way. Our Our moniker is one part, let's say, [indiscernible] we just ran a draft with our audio talent from Green Bay. We activated a couple of our major advertisers So as we look at it, we don't really look at trying to do just straight ads, is turning the spots and dots world. It really is cross platform and and the activation and amplifying of our partners. Which was seen in our upfront So we have long long term partnerships that have been strong and stay with us because of that activation. So we're not really seeing much difference between local and national as far as our our pace. And it has to do just with how we both service the local clients and the national clients.

39m 11s

Okay. That's helpful. Thanks. Lucy, maybe I could aim one your way. You noted the $66,000,000 of bond repurchases April. Can you just remind us that capital allocation priorities for the television group specifically? Should we expect continued debt pay down going forward, in particular, as we roll into next year when the political dollars, Chris highlighted, start to roll in?

39m 37s

Yeah. So as we've been saying for a couple of quarters now, Erin, and especially with the refi, our focus is on deleveraging the local media group. And this is one indication buying the debt in at a discount. Where we can start to drive that deleveraging down.

40m 2s

Okay. Perfect.

40m 3s

Thank you for the time, and, Lucy, best of luck.

40m 7s

Thank you.

40m 8s

Thanks, Aaron.

40m 11s

Thank you. Your next question is coming from Steven Cahall from Wells Fargo. Your line is live.

40m 18s

Thank you. Chris, I was wondering if you could talk a little more about the specifics of how you see deregulation unfolding I think when the Republicans have a majority of commissioners, then maybe they'll move to notice of proposed rulemaking. So I was wondering if you think that's the next step where then the industry will begin to have substantive conversations. Whether you participate as a buyer or a seller, do you feel like that process needs to clear any court challenges that it could face before you'd be willing to sort of sign and be willing to transact? Just trying to get an understanding of like how fast this can happen or if there's a number steps in the process that we'll need to wait for before you'd be comfortable transacting if we do get pretty significant deregulation like we expect.

41m 8s

Sure. So, look on that front, there's a number of current data points in terms of just the rules changing. One is that the confirmation of the third Republican commissioner Olivia Trusty is moving forward well I think our expectation is that she could be in place by Memorial Day And after that I do expect that a rulemaking will start to proceed. You saw Commissioner Carr making news today calling the end market ownership rules outdated and antiquated. And so there's definitely this groundswell is there and I expect that action will be taken once the the third Republican commissioner is put in place and that's looking like it's going to move forward fairly quickly. That said, in terms of M and A in the meantime, just the rules that we have on the books today, which include things like the UHF discount, which include ownership of two big fours, subject to a you know, a big four waiver, but it's the rules as they exist today do actually afford most players including Sinclair a significant amount of flexibility for M and A. So I think that at least from our perspective, you're going to see more activity from us You've already seen some.

42m 49s

Right? We announced a sale of five markets, a station swap, But you're going to start seeing more in the weeks to come we will start filing for some of the JSA buy ins that I've been talking about before. And that's a very accretive trade that should add tens of millions of dollars to our bottom line with very little cash out the door. I think station swaps are going to happen in the meantime. While we wait for some of these rules to change. And even large scale M and A or mergers are on the to do list, I think for many broadcasters and I don't think many depending on the situation, just you don't necessarily have to wait for the rules to change.

43m 47s

Got it. Thank you. And then just on advertising, should we assume with the change to the expense guide in the back half of the year that your visibility is also a little lower as you look out later in Q2? Obviously, April has gone happen in May, but maybe you can just speak to where the visibility [indiscernible] In Q2? Or is Q2 kind of as you before we had all volatility?

44m 14s

Thank you.

44m 17s

So I'll let others chime in, but in terms of our visibility it's really about four to six weeks out. So, what what data we have on Q3 and Q4 really isn't doesn't really tell us much at this point. And about 20% of our total expense load is variabilized to revenue. And so that sort of gives you a window as to why talking about full year guidance didn't make sense at this time.

44m 52s

And what I'll add is, the visibility is four to six weeks, but as we go into middle of third quarter, fourth quarter with the return of college football, And NFL were coming off a record championship games, Super Bowls, sports on broadcast have seen record highs. And the advertisers have noticed that. So even with the economic times, uncertainty is what we know is certain that there is a demand for top eight tier sports. And we're set up perfectly in the third and fourth quarter to capitalize on the eight tier sports that will be returning to the networks.

45m 36s

Thank you. Thank you. Your next question is coming from Benjamin Soff from Deutsche Bank. Your line is live. Good afternoon. Thanks for the question. I was curious if you could talk a little bit more about the Compulse deal, any additional color on that asset how it's impacting numbers? And then for Lucy, another really strong quarter on the expense side. Can you talk about where you were able to capture those savings? How much runway is left to continue taking costs out of the business? Thank you.

46m 10s

Yes. So why I do that part first, and then Chris will talk about the acquisition. So appreciate the compliment on the expense side. This is an enterprise wide [indiscernible] Where all of our department heads are engaged in looking for ways to work smarter. Be more efficient and really question the spending. And so I'd like to take credit for it, but I'm really to give credit to the entire organization on that. And so really in first quarter that is coming across a multitude of departments. I wish I could just point to one of them as being the main driver, but it really is coming across on an enter wide basis. Now what I would say is, are there more at expenses that if we needed to that we could take out of the business? Again, if we needed to, the answer is yes. But right now, there is not a need to go down to the bare minimum. And so we continue to spend where we see in the business. And and be smarter about the places where it's not growing or we really don't need to put investment behind it.

47m 35s

And in terms of the acquisition, Compulse as I stated in prior earnings results, is matured to the point where it really is a best in class platform It's delivering double digit growth for us every quarter year over year. It's got healthy margins. And we really are looking to scale it.

48m 1s

In a big way. So this acquisition on a pro form a basis ends up being a very attractive multiple for us because of the synergies. And it significantly increases the amount of revenue that we're putting on to the Convulse platform. So it's very accretive move in an area that is consolidating. And this will increase the financial size and significance of Compulse for for the ventures portfolio going forward.

48m 38s

I'll add that it's follows our commitment to being a multimedia company, not a singular broadcast company. And we recognize where viewer habits are shifting, and we will shift with those habits. We've made a commitment to our sellers, to our digital content folks that we would support them and the demand showcases why we will support that growth for Compulse. Because it's justified by its growth and by where viewer habits are.

49m 17s

Got it. Appreciate the color.

49m 19s

Thank you.

49m 23s

Thank you. Once again, everyone, if you have any questions or comments, Your next question is coming from David Hamburger from Morgan Stanley. Your line is live.

49m 36s

Thank you very much. And again, would like to echo the sentiment Lucy, you've always been very helpful answering questions and otherwise and wish you the best in your new endeavor.

49m 50s

Of course.

49m 51s

Last quarter, you had disclosed that you had renewed your retrans agreements representing 80% of the traditional big four. You had one that was active at the time. I assume based on the disclosure now, I wanted to confirm one that you've renegotiated that agreement seeing that you now mentioned you have nothing in until the end of twenty twenty six. As well, you had mentioned on the earnings call that the guidance you gave for the first quarter reflected accruals based on the current state of negotiations with that? Counterparty. I'm just curious, how did that end up, you know, shake out based on, you know, what you were accruing the result? And did that at all impact the distribution revenues in the first quarter?

50m 42s

So the short answer to that is no, it did not impact the Q1 results. We ended up there is an agreement in principle with that MVPD and we ended up, right at where we were were occurring at. [indiscernible] And just generally speaking about the slower than expected improvement in churn, I mean, you did highlight and we've all seen kind of the charter numbers You know, it does appear still to be somewhat mixed when you look across the pay TV universe. What are you expecting now as you look out second quarter guidance? Can you provide any additional thoughts or color on kind of your expectations for subscriber churn and I think in the past, you've actually disclosed, you know, that it's been consistently in mid single digits. Is that still the case?

51m 41s

Yes. So David that is still the case. Our forecast does assume mid single digit percents. And to your point, we were a little bit more optimistic in how quickly the subchurn would moderate. But again, it's just slightly off. And I do want to remind you that on a year over year basis, putting aside the forecast, on a year over year basis, we grew distribution revenues significantly.

52m 20s

I also would like to add David that we everything that we've seen so far and the growth in grocery trends and and our renewals on the reverse side. We are reiterating our two year CAGR from 23% to 25% of 20% mid single digits.

52m 45s

Thank you so much.

52m 51s

Thank you. That concludes our Q and A session. I'll now hand the conference back to Chris Ripley, President and CEO for closing remarks. Please go ahead.

53m

Thank you all for joining our call today and supporting Sinclair. To the extent you have any questions or comments, please reach out to us.

53m 10s

Thank you. Everyone, this concludes today's event. You may disconnect at time and have a wonderful day. Thank you for your participation.

Key Insights

Sinclair delivered solid Q1 financial results, with adjusted EBITDA exceeding the high end of guidance, driven by better-than-expected media expenses and strong core advertising performance despite macroeconomic uncertainty.
Distribution revenues increased by $15 million year-over-year, though subscriber churn improvements lagged expectations, resulting in distribution revenues coming in $2 million below guidance; net retransmission revenues grew by mid-single digits, and a two-year mid-single digit CAGR is expected through year-end.
The company completed a comprehensive refinancing, extending debt maturities to over six years and repurchased $66 million in debt at a discount; total net leverage stands at 5.8x, and Sinclair is focused on deleveraging the local media group.
Forward-looking guidance anticipates Q2 consolidated adjusted EBITDA between $91 million and $107 million, with local media core advertising revenue expected to be down approximately 2% year-over-year and distribution revenues up 1%; full-year cash tax payments are now forecast at $121 million, $95 million lower than prior guidance due to revised tax estimates.
Sinclair remains optimistic about potential industry deregulation, which could enable more M&A activity and portfolio rationalization; the company is also investing in digital growth (e.g., Compulse acquisition) and expanding sports/media content, while maintaining a cautious outlook on advertising due to reduced visibility and macroeconomic/tariff uncertainties.

Recent Transcripts

Sinclair exceeded EBITDA guidance and remains optimistic amid macro uncertainty and regulatory optimism.

Sinclair reported record political advertising and strong retransmission growth, exceeding EBITDA guidance.

Retransmission Growth

+5% YoY

Earnings

Report Date

May 7, 2025

Reported Revenue

776M

Beat +0.01%

Avg 1d Change

3.59%

Report Period

Q1 2025

Reported EPS

-2.2

Miss -22.47%

Implied Move 1d

9.21%

Transcript

11m 54s

12m 37s

Good afternoon, everyone, and thank you for joining us.

12m 41s

Beginning on Slide three, we're off to a solid start to the year despite the macroeconomic uncertainty all around us.

12m 48s

14m 18s

15m 36s

Chris, and good afternoon, everyone.

15m 38s

17m 10s

18m 41s

19m 23s

20m 22s

21m 38s

22m 59s

On behalf of the company, thank you for everything, Lucy. Now perhaps for the final time, let me turn it over to Lucy for a discussion on our financial results in more detail. Lucy?

23m 11s

Thank you, Chris, for the very kind words, and good afternoon, everyone. I'm pleased to say that I depart with Sinclair in a financially strong and healthy position.

23m 23s

25m 5s

26m 28s

28m 10s

29m 53s

31m 26s

32m 1s

32m 20s

Great, thanks. Good afternoon. Chris, let me just echo sentiments. Lucy, we go back a long, long way.

32m 28s

32m 40s

Thank you, Dan.

32m 43s

32m 58s

33m 11s

34m 48s

35m

35m 52s

Got it. Super helpful. Thank you and Lucy, best of luck.

35m 56s

Thank you, Dan.

35m 59s

Thank you. Your next question is coming from Erin Watts from Deutsche Bank. Your line is live.

36m 6s

36m 25s

Appreciate it. Thank you.

36m 27s

Of course.

36m 29s

36m 53s

37m 36s

So I think we're competitive on the domestic side, and the foreign side is still to be seen.

37m 44s

Okay.

37m 46s

38m 7s

39m 11s

39m 37s

40m 2s

Okay. Perfect.

40m 3s

Thank you for the time, and, Lucy, best of luck.

40m 7s

Thank you.

40m 8s

Thanks, Aaron.

40m 11s

Thank you. Your next question is coming from Steven Cahall from Wells Fargo. Your line is live.

40m 18s

41m 8s

42m 49s

43m 47s

44m 14s

Thank you.

44m 17s

44m 52s

45m 36s

46m 10s

47m 35s

48m 1s

48m 38s

49m 17s

Got it. Appreciate the color.

49m 19s

Thank you.

49m 23s

Thank you. Once again, everyone, if you have any questions or comments, Your next question is coming from David Hamburger from Morgan Stanley. Your line is live.

49m 36s

Thank you very much. And again, would like to echo the sentiment Lucy, you've always been very helpful answering questions and otherwise and wish you the best in your new endeavor.

49m 50s

Of course.

49m 51s

50m 42s

51m 41s

52m 20s

52m 45s

Thank you so much.

52m 51s

Thank you. That concludes our Q and A session. I'll now hand the conference back to Chris Ripley, President and CEO for closing remarks. Please go ahead.

53m

Thank you all for joining our call today and supporting Sinclair. To the extent you have any questions or comments, please reach out to us.

53m 10s

Thank you. Everyone, this concludes today's event. You may disconnect at time and have a wonderful day. Thank you for your participation.

Key Insights

Sinclair delivered solid Q1 financial results, with adjusted EBITDA exceeding the high end of guidance, driven by better-than-expected media expenses and strong core advertising performance despite macroeconomic uncertainty.
Distribution revenues increased by $15 million year-over-year, though subscriber churn improvements lagged expectations, resulting in distribution revenues coming in $2 million below guidance; net retransmission revenues grew by mid-single digits, and a two-year mid-single digit CAGR is expected through year-end.
The company completed a comprehensive refinancing, extending debt maturities to over six years and repurchased $66 million in debt at a discount; total net leverage stands at 5.8x, and Sinclair is focused on deleveraging the local media group.
Forward-looking guidance anticipates Q2 consolidated adjusted EBITDA between $91 million and $107 million, with local media core advertising revenue expected to be down approximately 2% year-over-year and distribution revenues up 1%; full-year cash tax payments are now forecast at $121 million, $95 million lower than prior guidance due to revised tax estimates.
Sinclair remains optimistic about potential industry deregulation, which could enable more M&A activity and portfolio rationalization; the company is also investing in digital growth (e.g., Compulse acquisition) and expanding sports/media content, while maintaining a cautious outlook on advertising due to reduced visibility and macroeconomic/tariff uncertainties.