Broadcasting Stocks

Cumulus Media on Wednesday quietly initiated trading on the OTC exchange under the ticker symbol "CMIA," and saw volume of 50,000 shares traded. The value of Cumulus' new shares is significantly higher than as "CMLSQ," which was a penny stock now written off to the history books.

With Comcast, 21st Century Fox, Disney, Time Warner and AT&T dominating the headlines today, how did broadcast media stocks fare on Wall Street? The market was decidedly mixed, with Nexstar again enjoying a growth spurt while Townsquare Media was down again.

On June 4, Townsquare Media's stock fell to an all-time low. Since then, the media company's shares have been on the rebound — until today. On heavier than average volume, TSQ was back in the red, and heading in the wrong direction.

Nexstar Media Group shares have seen a steady rebound since bottoming out on May 3 at $61.20. With Monday's market close, NXST is back where it was in late February, and within $10 of its all-time high.

With the addition of CBS Radio, all eyes are on Entercom as the company continues to fully integrate a host of high-profile properties into its operation. With a shaky Q1, ETM shares dipped significantly on Wall Street. Now, they've started a rebound — just in time for Tuesday's commencement of ex-dividend trading.

One highly influential Wall Street financial house on Monday put this conservative and Christian-themed media company under the microscope to see if it indeed has low PEs, solid outlooks, and decent dividends. "Fortunately for investors looking for this combination, we have identified a strong candidate which may be an impressive value," Zacks declares.

Emmis Communications has emerged as one of the radio industry's stars on Wall Street. It's gone nowhere but up since the start of 2018, and after some recent profit-taking resumed its climb in value in Thursday's trading. Could a new three-year high be on the way?

The future of CBS Inc. and kissing cousin Viacom has become a sizzling Manhattan soap opera that's as hot as Friday's weather. In the latest turn of events in a matter that sees CBS trying to stave off a merger with Viacom, it is moving forward with its annual shareholder meeting. The event was originally set for May 18.

U.S. financial markets were on the upswing, with the Dow Jones Industrials Average rising by 1.4%, and Nasdaq up 0.7%. Most media companies rode the wave, with Entercom seeing a much-needed bump. It's now at $7 a share.

Tuesday brought another tough trading session for Entercom stock. Volume was heavier than normal. The company's share value declined hour by hour. By the Closing Bell, ETM finished down 5.2% — a level not seen since November 2012, well before CBS Radio was on Entercom's radar.

U.S. financial markets enjoyed a positive start to the week. However, it was another up and down session for media stocks -- with several of the biggest radio and TV industry companies heading in the wrong direction on Wall Street.

On May 18, Emmis Communications stock soared to its highest closing price since March 2015. After some profit taking, the company's shares finished a short Memorial Day holiday week on an up note. Meanwhile, a robust recovery for Urban One shares is worth noting.

Can a “material adverse change” derail the purchase of a radio or TV station? Erwin Krasnow, a partner at Washington law firm Garvey Schubert Barer, takes the mic in this penultimate Deal Killers podcast moderated by RBR+TVBR Editor-in-Chief Adam R Jacobson. Also sharing their thoughts are media broker Doug Ferber of DEFcom Advisors and Bruce Mittman and Jim Leven — the leaders of radio broadcasting company Community Broadcasters.

If you haven't gotten nervous yet about the performance on Wall Street of two very different companies that, unfortunately, some confuse because of their similar names, today might be the day to start the nail biting. Entercom shares tumbled another 3.2%, while Entravision shares dipped to the $4 mark.

U.S. financial markets moved ahead on Wednesday, as the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.26% to 24,667.78. The Nasdaq composite index gained 0.89%, ending the day’s trading session at 7,462.45.