Why Is E.W. Scripps Trading Higher Today?

The E.W. Scripps Co (NASDAQ: SSP) reported a 40% year-on-year revenue growth to $591 million in the fourth quarter of FY20, exceeding the analyst estimate of $570.48 million.
Revenue from Local Media rose 43% to $473 million. Core advertising revenue declined 8.9% to $181 million due to a shift to political advertising and weakened economic conditions, reflecting the pandemic's impact on advertiser spending. Political revenue rose 808% to $138 million, and the Retransmission revenue rose 36% to $150 million. Revenue from National Media rose 28% to $117 million.
Scripps closed the ION national television network acquisition in January and has combined it with the five Katz networks and Newsy to create the Scripps Networks division.
The company closed the sale of Stitcher on October 16. Scripps announced selling Triton on February 17 for $230 million
EPS of $1.31 beat the consensus estimate by $0.01.
Cash and cash equivalents totaled $210 million, while total debt was $3.8 billion on January 31.
Scripps suspended issuing new guidance due to uncertainties associated with the pandemic.
Price action: SSP shares are up 5.56% at $19.37 on the last check Friday.

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