What Happened?
Shares of media, broadcasting, and digital services company E.W. Scripps (NASDAQ: SSP)
jumped 7.6% in the afternoon session after the stock continued to rally following its third-quarter earnings report, which investors viewed favorably despite a wider-than-expected loss.
This move extended a significant gain from the previous trading session, where the stock also surged after the results were released. While the company reported a loss of $0.55 per share, missing forecasts, investors focused on positive underlying trends. The company highlighted strong execution, including a 41% increase in Connected TV revenue and successful sales of broadcast stations. Furthermore, management pointed to progress in its sports strategy, with partnerships involving the WNBA and NHL driving advertising growth. E.W. Scripps also made strides in improving its financial position by cutting expenses and reducing its net leverage. A broader market rally may have also provided a tailwind for the shares.
Is now the time to buy E.W. Scripps? Access our full analysis report here.
What Is The Market Telling Us
E.W. Scripps’s shares are extremely volatile and have had 80 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today’s move indicates the market considers this news meaningful but not something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business.
The previous big move we wrote about was 3 days ago when the stock gained 24% on the news that the company reported mixed third-quarter financial results, where strong operational performance in key areas seemed to overshadow a headline loss. While total revenue fell 18.6% from the same period in the previous year to $525.9 million, the figure was in line with analyst estimates. However, the company's GAAP loss of $0.55 per share widely missed expectations. Despite these headwinds, investors appeared to focus on a significant positive: adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA). The company reported adjusted EBITDA of $80.43 million, which beat analyst consensus estimates by a notable 17%. This stronger-than-expected operational profitability seemed to outweigh the revenue decline and earnings miss, signaling to investors that the company's underlying business might be more resilient than the headline numbers suggested.
E.W. Scripps is up 12.1% since the beginning of the year, but at $2.83 per share, it is still trading 31.9% below its 52-week high of $4.15 from July 2025. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of E.W. Scripps’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $227.27.
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