Thanks to political advertising during the three-month period ending September 30, Townsquare Media saw its adjusted EBITDA climb by nearly 3% in the third quarter. Digital Advertising revenue once again fueled the non-election year dollars, increasing by 6% in the quarter. This helped the Westchester County, N.Y.-headquartered “local first” company led by CEO Bill Wilson to lower its net loss, impacted by a non-cash impairment charge.
“At the same time, we want to be candid about the challenges we face,” Wilson said in prepared comments distributed ahead of Townsquare Media’s now-traditional 8am Eastern earnings call for investors and financial analysts.
With frank words, Wilson continued, “Our local clients continue to feel pressure from higher operating costs and interest rates, and they are scrutinizing every marketing dollar, particularly those spent on traditional media.”
On the earnings call, he elaborated on an “incredibly soft” local advertising environment for the company’s radio stations, found in such markets as Tuscaloosa, Ala.; Buffalo-Niagara Falls; Portland and Bangor, Me.; and Fort Collins-Greeley, Colo.
Thus, on an ex-political basis, Townsquare Media’s Broadcast Advertising net revenue fell by 5.2% in the third quarter. A turnaround is not expected until next year at the soonest. “We expect those declines to deepen in the fourth quarter, partly as political advertising crowds out other inventory,” Wilson said.
In addition, while Townsquare Interactive’s profit remains “strong,” Wilson revealed that “lower-than-anticipated sales velocity means it will not return to sequential revenue growth in Q4 2026 as we had projected.”
How did investors take the news? In early pre-market trading on Wednesday (11/4), NYSE-traded “TSQ” was down to $2.96, falling 5 cents after a 17-cent decline to end Tuesday’s trading session.
Did Townsquare meet or miss analyst expectations? Two analysts reporting to Yahoo! Finance chimed in on revenue, with a low estimate of $108.46 million and a high estimate of $108.85 million. The company easily beat that forecast, with net revenue climbing to $110.95 million, from $106.76 million.
One analyst projected earnings per share of $0.12. On an adjusted and diluted basis, this is exactly where Townsquare Media’s Q3 EPS finished, rising from $0.05, as adjusted net income rose to $2.9 million from $855 million.
TOWNSQUARE MEDIA Q3 2026 AT A GLANCE
- Net revenue beat analysts’ forecasts with a climb to $110.95 million, from $106.76 million
- On an adjusted and diluted basis, Townsquare Media’s earnings per share came in at $0.12, rising from $0.05
- Broadcast Advertising growth was statistically flat, thanks to political advertising
- Subscription Digital Marketing Solutions dollars were down by 8.5% in Q3
- Townsquare Media’s Board of Directors has elected to suspend its dividend
Adjusted EBITDA rose slightly to $22.61 million, from $22.02 million, and on an ex-political basis dipped to $20.14 million from $21.87 million. Political revenue tracked ahead of company expectations.
A non-cash impairment charge of $8.1 million was taken during Q3, compared to a similar charge of $3.1 million seen in the third quarter of 2025.
Meanwhile, shareholders will not be getting a $0.20 per share bonus as they did in the previous sequential quarter, as Townsquare Media’s Board of Directors approved a suspension of its quarterly cash dividend. Why? The company explained that this will help it redirect capital toward general corporate liquidity and strategic growth opportunities. “Any future declaration of dividends will be at the discretion of the Board of Directors,” Townsquare Media noted.
Wilson further explained, “We do not believe that the market is ascribing value to the dividend and we believe this cash can generate greater value for shareholders elsewhere. Suspending the dividend will preserve approximately $14 million of cash annually, which we will use for general corporate liquidity and to opportunistically pursue higher-return opportunities. We believe this is the prudent course for Townsquare and our stakeholders, and that it positions us to continue investing in our digital growth engine while strengthening our financial flexibility.”
On a positive note, the strength of Townsquare Media’s Digital Advertising platform remains the strongest dollar-generation segment for the company, as Q3 net revenue grew by 3.9%, to $110.9 million, exceeded the company’s own guidance range.
Adjusted EBITDA of $22.6 million increased 2.7% year-over-year and was within Townsquare Media’s guidance range, and the results were driven by the growth of Townsquare Ignite, the Digital Advertising business.
Digital Advertising net revenue grew 12.7% year-over-year, accelerating for the third consecutive quarter, led by programmatic revenue growth of 22.5%. Townsquare’s Media Partnerships business now serves 18 partners and extends its digital programmatic advertising platform to 122 markets across the United States; the company expects Media Partnerships revenue to more than double in 2026.
“In addition, Townsquare Interactive delivered strong profitability, with Segment Profit margins of 36% in Q3, as we rebuild and grow our sales team,” Wilson shared.
