Broadcasting Stocks

Shares of iHeartMedia stock catapulted upward in one of the company's biggest-ever buying sessions on Wall Street. As the Closing Bell rang on the Nasdaq GlobalSelect Market on Tuesday, IHRT was up by more than 11% from Monday. Why? An analyst upgrade and big news out of Britain fueled the activity.

U.S. financial markets started the week off with up-and-down movement among broadcast media companies publicly trading stock on Wall Street. Nexstar shares continue to roar upward, while Sinclair's momentum was stopped on Monday. Moving downward: radio industry leaders Entercom and Beasley Media Group.

A special meeting of Comscore Inc. shareholders is now over. And, the results of the Tuesday event are now known. It's good news for one of America's biggest MVPDs and internet service providers.

Monday's trading saw gains of significance for Salem Media Group, Sinclair Broadcast Group, ViacomCBS, Disney and Cumulus Media. That said, Veritone Inc. suffered another dip of significance, falling $4.29 to $28.92 to continue a retreat from a recent growth trend for the audio attribution technology company actively seeking TV and radio clients.

Tech stocks paced a wave of declines on Wall Street Wednesday, as the Chair of the Federal Reserve declined to say whether or not the Central Bank will work to put a kibosh on inflationary pressure. Media stocks were caught up in the dips.

Entravision Communications Corp., which owns radio and TV stations superserving U.S. Hispanic consumers, has determined when it will share its final fourth quarter and full-year 2020 financial results. The announcement came on a highly active day for the company's stock.

Publicly traded radio and television broadcasting companies on Tuesday saw a flurry of highly divergent activity on Wall Street. Meredith Corp., Sinclair Broadcast Group and Entercom were among the key gainers. The decliners range from Saga Communications to Disney and Cumulus Media.

U.S. financial markets enjoyed widespread gains on Monday. But, not every media company took part in the upward activity. TEGNA, which released its Q4 and full-year 2020 results early Monday, saw its shares decline. Radio broadcasting company Townsquare Media, which will report its Q4 and full-year 2020 results in two weeks, was also down from Friday.

Thursday evening's big headline across business media was AT&T's revelation that it will sell a 30% stake in its satellite and terrestrial video services provider business, inclusive of DirecTV. The entity grabbing the stake: TPG Capital. For Moody's Investors Service, this is a credit positive move for AT&T.

Salem Media Group, the media company known for its Christian-themed and conservative Talk radio stations, has selected when it will issue its fourth quarter and full-year 2020 financial results. The announcement came after Salem shares on Wednesday hit their highest closing price since September 2018.

The Board of Directors for the company that owns such key NBC affiliates as WXIA-11 in Atlanta and WGRZ-2 in Buffalo has declared a dividend payable April 1. The news came ahead of the Closing Bell on Wall Street, which saw TEGNA shares reach close to $18 in a positive trading session for the broadcast TV company.

SBS intends to use the net proceeds of this offering along with cash on hand to finally repay its 12.5% senior secured notes due 2017, along with certain other consideration; to repurchase and/or redeem all of its outstanding 10 3/4% Series B Preferred Stock; and to pay related fees and expenses.

The audio media company's shares have enjoyed a slow, steady rebound since sinking to $3.35 at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic some 11 months ago. Now, Cumulus Media will reveal its fourth quarter and full-year 2020 results in exactly two weeks.

It's share price is now higher than where it was before the COVID-19 pandemic ushered in stay-at-home edicts and, with it, a sharp financial downturn on Wall Street, Broad Street and on stock markets across the globe. With that positive momentum, Nielsen Holdings plc's Board of Directors has declared a quarterly cash dividend.

With Tuesday's Closing Bell on Wall Street, Townsquare Media shares are now at their highest price in one year. And, it marks a 157% improvement from the depths of 2020, when the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic punctured media stocks severely.