Broadcasting Stocks

The Meredith Corp.'s Board of Directors has declared a regular quarterly dividend of significant stature. The decision came during Meredith's annual shareholders meeting, where stock holders elected PBS's President/CEO to the board for a three-year term expiring in 2021.

U.S. financial markets moved downward on Wednesday, as the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.81% to 25,080.50. The Nasdaq composite lost 0.90%, ending the day’s trading session at 7,136.39.

Tuesday brought mixed trading to Wall Street as the Nasdaq index finished at 7,200.88, just 0.01 points higher than on Veterans Day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 100.69 points, however, to 25,286.49. So was Beasley Media Group stock, which fell below an important threshold and is now at its lowest price in more than two years.

The dividend will be paid to qualifying shareholders one day after Entercom shares go ex-dividend and was expected. But, what was not revealed during the company's Q3 earnings call was the value of the dividend to shareholders. The quarterly dividend is in line with previous quarters.

Third-quarter results from iHeartMedia, filed with the SEC late Thursday, were largely positive. However, that failed to move the needle for investors, as its shares lost a penny, finishing at 49 cents. Consolidated operating income surged, with across-the-board improvements seen.

It was a tale of ups and downs for many companies reporting Q3 earnings results this week. For Discovery Communications, gains on Wall Street were seen after the company offered results that beat FactSet consensus estimates. For Entravision, a 19.2% slide in its stock value came following the release of its earnings performance Wednesday afternoon.

Salem Media Group released its Q3 2018 fiscal results immediately after the Closing Bell on Wall Street. The numbers came after Salem stock inched upward. However, it's still nearly half of its year-end target price.

At first, it looked as if Entercom shareholders were satisfied with the company's Q3 earnings. However, that was far from the case. On increasingly heavy volume across Tuesday's trading, shares of ETM swung downward from 10am on, and finally balanced out in the midday hours. When all was said and done, Entercom shares were of 9.99% from Monday's close.

U.S. financial markets started the first full week of November on a mixed note, as the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 190.87 to 25,461.70, while Nasdaq declined 28.14 to 7,328.85. How did media stocks fare?

It was a bruising finish to the week on Wall Street for some top tech companies, as the Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 109.91 points, to 25,270.83 points. Nasdaq was off 77.06, to 7,356.99. The big loser was Apple, which slid by 6.6%. Then there were Entravision and Entercom, companies that enjoyed healthy gains.

Tongues were wagging across Radioland on Thursday in response to a report in Financial Times that claims "Apple is turning to traditional broadcasting to boost its streaming service, exploring a tie-up with iHeartMedia, the largest U.S. radio group that is attempting to claw itself out of bankruptcy." The report -- and subsequent coverage in CNBC and across the radio industry's trade publications -- helped iHeart stock rise 32.4% on Thursday, to 49 cents.

If you don't think investors are salivating over SiriusXM's planned merger acquisition of Pandora Media, think again. Pandora shares twice in September surged past $9.50 a share, and in early after-hours trading on Wednesday all signs indicate that the streaming audio company is on its way to match or beat those year-to-date peaks.

Although Tuesday's trading volume was much lower than average, some industry observers have keenly observed Cumulus Media's current stock trajectory. Midway through Wednesday's trading session on Wall Street, shares are at their lowest since emerging from debtor-in-possession status.

Companies ranging from Snap Inc. and Amazon to Netflix and Apple saw another tough trading session on Wall Street, with declines on Monday. For radio and TV companies, the performance was largely OK. That said, Veritone Inc. shares are at a new low.

At least the week is over on Wall Street. Media stocks were pummeled again as the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 296.24 to 24,688.31, and Nasdaq dropped 151.12 to 7,167.21. Blame was placed on tech and internet stocks. While Beasley and Viacom's Class B shares scored important gains, there was red nearly everywhere else.