In spring 2014, a unit of Salem Media Group agreed to purchase a Class A FM serving the Greenville-Spartanburg, S.C., market for $1.125 million. It simulcasts on another Class A FM, bringing coverage of Classic Hits “Earth FM” south to the Anderson and Clemson areas.
It gave Salem a second station in the market, pairing it with a 100kw conservative Talk FM it acquired from Bob Jones University by Salem in August 2012 for $3 million.
Now, Salem is selling the trio of FMs. Investors reacted by pushing the company’s stock to levels last seen in the depths of the late 2000s financial crisis.
WGTK “94.5 The Answer” in Greenville, WRTH-FM in Greer, and WLTE-FM in Powdersville, S.C. are being sold to Educational Media Foundation.
That’s the parent of the noncommercial Christian Contemporary Music giant “KLOVE” network and its Worship Music-focused sibling, Air1.
What does this mean for current KLOVE listeners in Upstate South Carolina?
Full market coverage is arriving, as the only station presently audible in the market is WLXK-FM in Boiling Springs, N.C., best heard in areas to the north and east of Spartanburg. Air1 does not have a presence in Greenville-Spartanburg.
As such, it is a safe bet that both Air1 and KLOVE will gain on-air homes serving the market upon closing.
How much is EMF paying Salem? A $6,775,000 purchase price has been agreed upon, with a $338,750 escrow deposit being held by Jorgenson Broadcast Brokerage.
The brokerage, headed by Mark Jorgenson, represents Salem in this transaction, which does not include W245CH at 96.9 MHz in Greenville, which rebroadcasts WGTK’s HD3 Gospel programming as “Rejoice 96.9.”
The divestment by Salem of the three FMs in South Carolina comes at a fragile financial moment for the company headed by CEO Dave Santrella.
“We have enjoyed our years in the Greenville-Spartanburg market but have made the strategic decision to divest our interests there,” Santrella said in prepared comments distributed midday Wednesday. “As we do, we are grateful to be able to place these signals in the hands of Educational Media Foundation, who shares a like-minded mission with Salem through their music programming. We are also thankful to our Greenville-Spartanburg staff for their many years of service.”
At the Closing Bell on Wednesday, SALM, which trades on the Nasdaq Global Market, was valued at just $0.6810, down 4.1% on news of the divestent. It is a valuation last seen by Salem in July 2009, when the “Great Recession” deflated broadcast radio stocks for many companies.
For the third quarter of 2023, Salem is projecting total revenue to decline between 3% and 5% from last year. Ex-political, revenue is expected to decline between 1% and 3%. The company is also projecting Recurring Operating Expenses to be between a decrease of 1% and increase of 2% compared to Q3 2022 Recurring Operating Expenses of $60.8 million.
