Key Financial Data
- Q2 Total revenue: $839 million (+9% year-over)
- Broadcasting revenue: $813 million (+8%)
- Production companies revenue: $26 million (+44%)
- Core advertising revenue: $357 million (-1%)
- Political advertising revenue: $83 million
- Retransmission consent revenue: $359 million (-3%)
- Net retransmission revenue: $150 million (+10%)
- Other broadcasting revenue: $14 million (-7%)
- Broadcasting expenses: $569 million (+1%)
- Station expenses: $360 million (+9%)
- Network affiliation fees: $209 million (-10%)
- Net income: $14 million, compared with a net loss of $56 million
- Read more Q2 2026 media earnings coverage | Gray Media coverage
Gray Media saw a healthy dose of political advertising spend on its local television stations as campaigns and causes used their platform to get out various messages ahead of the midterm election.
During the second quarter (Q2) of the year, political ad revenue clocked in at $83 million, helping to boost Gray Media’s overall income to $839 million, a 9 percent increase compared to the same period last year.
Fees charged to pay television companies and core advertising revenue contributed the most to Gray Media’s overall income, with both segments having a near-equitable share of influence on earnings. Core advertising revenue declined 1 percent to $357 million, though recent station acquisitions contributed $15 million to the segment. Distribution fees collected from cable, satellite and some streaming TV services brought in $359 million, down 3 percent.
On the political advertising side, Gray Media’s Executive Chairman and co-CEO Hilton Howell, Jr. said campaign and candidate spending was “trending ahead of not only 2024 but also 2022 year-to-date levels.” Howell said net retransmission revenue returned to year-over-year growth even when excluding recent acquisitions and despite the distribution blackout.
“We have made progress on every front,” Howell, Jr. said in prepared remarks on Friday. “We have added stations in 22 markets (net of dispositions) including stations in six markets from American Spirit Media. We continue to invest in our stations, people and communities to drive journalistic excellence, as reflected by our 93 Regional Edward R. Murrow Awards this year, up from 81 last year.”
Howell, Jr. also noted additional sports rights that will bring dozens of Atlanta Hawks games to its independent station WANF (Channel 46) later this year. Gray Media is one of several broadcasters to pursue local sports broadcasts as a way to add value to its portfolio of stations; the company has capitalized on the demise of regional sports networks in many of the areas where it has broadcast operations and has established regional terrestrial sports broadcast networks to distribute live games across its stations and some partners.
Gray Media continued an active acquisition strategy during the quarter, completing transactions involving stations from Allen Media Group, Block Communications and Sagamore Hill Broadcasting, along with a station swap involving the E. W. Scripps Company. The company said it has added stations in 22 markets this year after certain dispositions.
The company ended June with $176 million in cash and $5.87 billion in outstanding debt principal.
For the third quarter, Gray expects political advertising revenue of $165 million to $185 million and total revenue of $935 million to $965 million.
“Our goal is to extend our market leadership as the largest owner of top-rated local television stations by prudently investing in our broadcast business, while also prioritizing balance sheet deleveraging,” Howell, Jr. said.
